


Trust Your Instincts

by VioletteShadow



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: BAMF Harry Potter, But just for a moment, Creature Inheritance, M/M, Powerful Harry, Soulmates, Suicidal Thoughts, Veela Draco Malfoy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-04-28
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:28:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 10
Words: 28,543
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23105503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VioletteShadow/pseuds/VioletteShadow
Summary: Harry has been having the oddest feeling for a while now. Who is calling to him? And when he finds him how can he help and save the Wizarding World too?A little Veela Draco/Powerful Harry soulmate action!-----This work is a gift to Originella who gifted me her awesome fic "Fallen Angel" (go check it out)! This isn't Snarry, but I already have one of those in the works. I hope a little Darry will be ok!----I have been updating my other fics 2-3 times a week since being homebound due to the corona virus, but work is starting back up in a few weeks so I will be updating this fic once a week. I have the first 9 chapters ready to go and am about halfway done, so it should end up at about 20 chaps.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Comments: 91
Kudos: 391





	1. What is this feeling?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [originella](https://archiveofourown.org/users/originella/gifts).



Sweat beaded along the brow of Harry Potter's face, scrunched in concentration. He was entirely focused on the detailed task at hand, which happened to be an appendectomy. He was performing the procedure on a recently deceased elderly wizard who had passed away in his sleep from old age. Madame Pomfrey had been scheduling these lessons and surgeries twice a week for him since his third year when he had come to her and expressed an earnest interest in healing. 

Harry knew that most everyone expected him to become an Auror after graduating Hogwarts, but he had no wish to see any more lives lost. As soon as he could fulfill the damn prophesy and face Voldemort once and for all he was done fighting. He would find a nice quiet cottage somewhere in the countryside, floo to the Burrow each Sunday for dinner, go over to Ron and Hermione's and play with their kids (if they ever admitted their feelings for each other!), and just lead a nice quiet life. He may even find a nice young man to settle down with, but Harry wasn't too sure that would ever happen. 

Harry had accepted his sexuality easily. After all, it is hard to stress about liking other blokes when you are constantly worried about being killed by a madman. That, however, did not make the Wizarding World more accepting of homosexuality. Not surprisingly, the archaic views held by much of the Wizarding population included an intolerance for same-sex couples, just as they did for magical creatures, muggles, and anything else outside the norm. Even many of those pitted against Voldemort held such beliefs. Much of the Wizarding World may not want to eradicate creatures and muggles, but they still looked down on them as they did those who were gay.

For this reason, Harry kept his sexuality quiet. It wasn't as if he was looking to date right now anyway. He was far too busy to deal with relationships, and Harry knew himself well enough to know that he was just not the type for casual flings like Seamus or Lavender. He did not understand the allure of shagging a random bloke and then walking away. Maybe it was due to his loveless childhood, but Harry dreamt of forging a deep bond with someone even more than he dreamt of sex.

"Watch your cauterizing, Mr. Potter. If this man's heart were pumping there would be blood gushing from that tissue!" Madame Pomfrey's reprimand cut through Harry's wandering thoughts and brought him back to the task at hand. With renewed focus, he gripped his wand in his right hand and straightened the viewing mirror in his left. The viewing mirror was an invention he and Madame Pomfrey were working on together. Harry had come up with the idea when attempting to explaining muggle X-rays and CAT scans. 

Due to the use of potions and charms, wizards seldom had to perform surgeries. Problems arose when wizards did require more complex, or subtle, medical procedures. Wizarding diagnostics were sorely primitive. Oddly in a Wizarding hospital, one was more likely to die from appendicitis than a dark curse. Curses were easily traced and had counter curses; whereas general healing charms only went so far to cure natural disease. Wizards had no access to muggle imaging and diagnostic equipment. If a person was suspected of internal injuries or disease the only way wizards had to fix the problem was to cut them open and hope to find the problem in an exploratory surgery before the patient passed away. They also had no concept of genetic diseases, blood work, transfusions, or many other common muggle medical practices.

Harry vowed that he would change this. He may not be a pureblood, but he was the heir of two of the most influential houses in the Wizarding World, the Potters, and the Blacks. He was also The Boy Who Lived, and although he had never wanted nor used his celebrity for personal gain, he would for this. He would be a healer and he would save lives...if he survived long enough to do so.

Focusing back on his viewing mirror, which acted much like a muggle video camera and MRI combined. He was able to view into the patient's body without opening them up. He was currently working on creating a large mirror that could view the whole body at once, but for now, had only perfected a smaller model. The largest obstacle that they had run into thus far was that the operator had to control the mirror themself in order to focus it properly, which meant that they had to do magic with both hands simultaneously. Harry was nearly ambidextrous, allowing him to pick this up much more quickly than Madam Pomfrey had. He attributed this to his Quidditch training, where he would force himself to practice catching the snitch with both his left and right hands while steering his broom with the other.

As he started magically stitching the last portion of the internal wound Harry felt his mind pulled away from his task yet again. He was momentarily consumed by a feeling of utter hopelessness and fear, which was quickly replaced with a bone-deep sense that something within him was missing. This had been happening with alarming frequency over the last few months and it was causing Harry a good deal of stress. He had no idea where these feelings were coming from, but he often had to fight the urge to go hunting for something. Although what that something was he didn't have a clue. It was making focusing difficult, which was not convenient when one was trying to study for school, practice medi-wizardry, and read every defensive and dark arts textbook in the library.

"Harry Dear, are you quite alright?"

Harry was snapped out of his troubled thoughts and quickly placed his final stitch and banished the detached appendix. At least he was able to perform the entire surgery with magic without ever having to open up the cadaver. If it had been a living human being his distraction could have caused serious complications.

"I am sorry, Madame Pomfrey. I don't know what is wrong with me lately!" Harry sighed frustrated.

Madam Pomfrey patted his shoulder, "There, there, dear. Nothing to be bothered by. Everyone gets distracted occasionally. Have you been getting enough rest? Do we need to cut our sessions back?"

Harry rubbed his eyes, "No, ma'am. I am getting plenty of sleep. I have just been having these strange, awful...feelings."

"Why don't you come into my office and we can talk about it over a cuppa?" She smiled warmly. She had become such a comforting presence in Harry's life he decided to take her up on her offer. Maybe telling someone about these episodes would ease his mind.

"Thank you, I think I would like that."

A few minutes later had Harry and his mentor sitting in her cozy office into armchairs by a crackling fire. Harry sipped at his mint tea and relaxed into the welcoming cushions. Madame Pomfrey looked him over with a discerning eye before starting, "So, tell me about these feelings Harry."

"Well," Harry thought about it a moment, "I guess it started over the summer. Out of the blue, I will be overcome by fear, or loneliness, or anger, or sadness. It only lasts for a second, sometimes less, but afterward, I am always left with a sense of loss...like part of me is missing and I am supposed the find it. It feels so strong sometimes I find myself starting to stand, or leave wherever I am to start looking. Sometimes I feel like I am on the verge of a panic attack or something. Like if I don't start looking right away I am going to fall apart. The weirdest part is that these emotions, the sad ones, they don't feel like mine...if that makes any sense."

Harry looked down at his hands, not wanting to see what Madam Pomfrey thought of his issues. Would she think him unfit to be a medi-wizard? Would she call a halt to their training? He loved his medi-wizard training, even more than he loved Quidditch. It made him feel whole and accomplished as nothing else did. 

A clock on the mantel clicked away in the silence that Harry's statement had left and after a few minutes without a response from Madame Pomfrey Harry couldn't stand it anymore and looked up at her. His mentor seemed lost in thought as she stared into the crackling flames. A puzzled frown marred her features, but no look of condemnation was present, which made Harry relax slightly.

When she did speak the sudden sound of her voice in the stillness made Harry jump. "How old are you now Harry?"

"I turned sixteen this past summer, about two months ago."

"I thought so, but that is odd..." She trailed off, back into silent contemplation.

Harry tried to relax while he waited for her to resurface. He still felt the need to go looking for...something. It was like an itch under his skin urging him to scour the earth until he found his missing piece.

"Harry Dear, are you sexually active?"

Harry choked on his tea and spent the next minute coughing and red-faced, "Wh...What?"

"Are you sexually active? No need to be embarrassed dear." She repeated serenely.

Harry felt his face flame even hotter as he shook his head no.

"And this urge that you have to search out something...has it been getting stronger as time goes on."

"Yes, ma'am." Harry managed through his embarrassment.

"Hmmm, very odd indeed. Well, Harry, I have a theory, but I cannot confirm that this is the true issue since there are some inconsistencies in your case."

Harry sat up straight, eager to hear what she had come up with.

"Every decade or so we have a student come into a creature inheritance while attending school. Are you aware of creature inheritances?" Madame Pomfrey was in full lecture mode, which prompted Harry to respond as he usually did during their medi-wizard lessons.

"A creature inheritance is when a witch or wizard with creature lineage comes of age on their seventeenth birthday. On this day they may inherit a few of the abilities of their creature ancestor. This is most commonly seen in France where the Veela and Wizarding populations live in close proximity and bonding is frequent. Fleur would be an example of this. She is a quarter-veela and on her seventeenth birthday, she inherited a slight allure. Although it is very weak compared to the strength of a full Veela."

"Very good Harry," Madame Pomfrey beamed, "Have you heard of a soul-bond yet?"

Harry shook his head, "No ma'am."

"In very rare instances magical creatures share soul-bonds with a true soul mate. This is the mate that they are destined to spend their life with. Occasionally when a Hogwarts student comes into a creature inheritance it is found that they are soul-bound to another creature."

Harry had a sinking feeling in his stomach, "I don't have any creature blood in me though, do I?"

"No, not that I am aware of, no. But in extremely rare instances a powerful human is found to have a soul-bond with a magical creature. I believe that this is what is happening to you, Harry. I believe that you have a true soul mate. It is a rare and precious gift to have a soul-bond with another being."

"But I am only sixteen. Didn't you say that you didn't feel a soul-bond until you are seventeen?"

That puzzled frown crossed, "That is the part that isn't quite adding up. I have never heard of a case where a soul-bond has been felt before the seventeenth birthday. Although there may be a few signs before coming of age, such as your inclination to remain a virgin for your mate..."

"I haven't been...abstaining because of that." Harry interrupted, blushing to his roots again.

"It is a subconscious instinct, dear. Also depending on you and your mate's personalities you may have also done some posturing or showing off to them if you have met them yet that is."

"Ummm, I don't think I have... Are you sure I even have a soul mate? Couldn't this all just be a coincidence?"

Madame Pomfrey smiled warmly, "Of course I may be mistaken, but I doubt it."

Harry groaned a little and slouched back in his chair, "Why me?! Why is it always me?"

"Harry, dear, this is a good thing. If you do share a soul-bond with someone you have the opportunity to feel one of the deepest connections possible to share with another. As soon as you recognize your mate you will immediately feel grounded and content."

Harry had had a lot of practice absorbing life-changing information, but this was still difficult news to take in. 

"Umm, Madame Pomfrey, what if my...mate...what if she... I mean to say I am... I can't...girls..." Harry stopped and hung his head, his first time trying to explain that he was gay and he couldn't even get the words out.

"My, my Harry, you are a homosexual?" Harry nodded, looking up at his Mentor for the last three years. "Never would have guessed, even after working so closely with you. I do wonder if your mate shall be male then. I have never heard of homosexual soul mates." Madame Pomfrey looked curious rather than disgusted, which Harry took as a good sign.

"So you don't mind?"

"Can say that it is my business. But it is not an easy path, dear, not easy at all." Madame Pomfrey sighed.

Harry shrugged; it wasn't as if he had a choice in the matter no matter what now that he seemed to have a secret soul mate hiding about. "But what if it is a girl and..."

"Nonsense, this person contains a matching piece of your soul. You will be perfect for each other in every way imaginable. Even if it is someone you have known for years as soon as your souls recognize each other you will find an instant companion. It is said that the love of a soul-bonded pair is the strongest there is." It was a little off-putting how the usually businesslike medi-witch was suddenly gushing like a romance novel.

"Ok. But if it can be anyone how do I know if I have found them."

"I suppose you will know when the time is right. As it usually becomes apparent when you come of age your case may be unique. Also because of the sadness that seems to be emanating through your soul-bond something may be deeply troubling your mate. I would follow your instincts in this case. But Harry, do try to stay out of trouble."

Harry gave her a sardonic smile, "Somehow it always seems to find me, regardless!"

Madame Pomfrey laughed, looking over at the clock, "Oh, look at the time, well past curfew. I shall have to send you back with a note!"

\---

That night in his bed Harry's head was filled with a combination of wonder and dread at the idea of a soul mate. By the time light started to appear on the horizon Harry had accepted since there was no way around it he would try to make the most of the situation. A small bubble of hope had grown in his chest that finally, he would find someone to love who would truly love him back.


	2. The Missing Piece

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Because it is my birthday today, I figured you all deserved the next chapter a day early as a present!
> 
> I hope y'all enjoy it!

Another month past at Hogwarts. Harry was having more frequent episodes where he would feel the terror that his soulmate seemed to constantly be consumed by. Harry was increasingly concerned about his soulmate, whoever they may be. He no longer cared if they were male or female, he just wished to help and protect them. He was no closer, however, to figuring out who it was. Harry had the growing sensation that he wasn't seeing something that was right in front of him. It was exceedingly frustrating. 

It was the day before Halloween and everyone seemed to be even more excited than usual. The Halloween Feast tomorrow was to be followed by a dance in the great hall. Ron had blushingly asked Hermione to accompany him to the dance, which meant that they would probably be snogging the whole time which made it event less appealing to Harry. He would just spend the night in his bed, waiting for the horrible vision of whatever horrors Voldemort got up to. It was Halloween after all, snake-face always had big plans for Halloween.

Harry escaped the common room, where all anyone could talk about were the next day's festivities and decided to visit Hagrid before curfew. He made his way down to his friend's hut and spent an hour discussing Hagrid's latest project. This, of course, led to a little jaunt into the forbidden forest so that Hagrid could show Harry the pond where he was breeding a large frog with fangs and little wings that, as of yet, were too weak to heft the pudgy bodies off the ground. By the time they returned to the grounds, Harry realized he had once again missed curfew. A quick note from Hagrid and Harry was rushing back to the castle.

Harry had just made it to the bottom of the front steps when a wave of agony so severe it took him to his knees. He was overwhelmed with a terror and hopelessness that Harry could never have even imagined. As the feelings lifted, Harry knew without a doubt that his mate was in serious trouble and that if he didn't find them right away something terrible was going to happen. The only issue that he now had was that he had no idea how to find them.

Harry concentrated on the feelings that he got from his mate. He drew in upon himself, mentally probing his magic. After a few moments, he seemed to find a thread of magic that felt different. Focusing on that feeling Harry drew his wand.

He closed his eyes and whispered, "Point me!"

When he opened his eyes his wand was pointing inside the castle. Harry took off at a run, following the spell and hoping that his mate was truly inside the castle. 

\---

As Harry entered the entrance hall, his wand tip veered towards the staircase. It wasn't until he hit the fourth floor that he paused to catch his breath and recast the spell. He took a moment braced against the wall, taking a great lungful of air. As he pushed off the wall, he spotted a glimmer of red on the stone floor. Bending down he realized it was a droplet of blood.

Looking up and down the hall Harry saw more droplets scattered here and there. Seemingly of its own volition, Harry's hand reached out and touched the closest drop. Instantly, he knew that this was his mate's blood. Harry didn't even pause to wonder at the power of the magic that allowed him to recognize his mate’s blood from just a touch. He was running faster now, not even realizing that he wasn't even looking at his point me spell, that his body seemed to instinctively know where to go. He slowed as he reached the bottom of the stairs to the astronomy tower. There were larger blood drops here, splashed up the stairs, and in places smeared on the walls. His mate was in trouble and if someone was with them it wouldn't do to alert them of his approach by thundering up the stairs. 

Suddenly very happy that all of those nights sneaking around under his invisibility cloak had trained him how to walk silently, Harry started up the stairs. The door at the top was ajar and Harry peered through the crack. At first, he didn't notice anything, the whole tower seemed empty. Then the sound of sobbing made his eyes sweep back across the open space. Once he saw him Harry had no idea how he had overlooked the figure slumped against the outer wall, for Draco Malfoy was truly a sight to behold in the moonlight. Even with eyes and nose watering and an expression of agony on his face he was beautiful. 

This was not a new thought to Harry. Draco had, on more than one occasion, featured in Harry's fantasies. For as much as they argued, Draco was still gorgeous and smart...and looked ridiculously sexy in a pair of tight trousers. Their arguments had tapered off over the last year, to the point that they were nearly civil when interacting in class. Harry couldn't recall even exchanging snide comments with the blonde since the start of term. 

In fact, Harry had barely seen the Slytherin this year. Looking back Harry knew Draco had been in class, but the normally outspoken boy seemed to have blended into the background. Now that Harry thought about it, he found it odd that he hadn't noticed Draco more often this term. Over the past two years he had frequently found himself staring at the blonde and daydreaming about his skin, or his hair, or his eyes, or his lips, or his ears...he had the most edible looking ears! Maybe that had been the soul-bond thing showing itself...Maybe on a subconscious level, he had known that he and the other boy shared a connection. He wondered if Draco was aware he had a soulmate. Was their connection only one-sided? What if Harry fell in love with Draco but the blonde didn't return his feelings?

Harry shook his head to clear his thoughts. His mate was obviously in distress and Harry had his head in the clouds. Harry's first reaction was to throw open the door, rush over and comfort his mate. Yet knowing Draco, that may not be the best course of action, especially when taking into account their past. His Gryffindor tendencies were more likely to get him hexed than welcomed. Instead, he slowly opened the door, allowing its creaking hinges to announce his presence.

Draco's head shot up at the noise and his grey eyes connected with Harry's for just a moment before his head collapsed forward to rest against his knees.

"What do you want, Potter?" The words were most likely meant to sound sharp and cutting, but instead, they just sounded sad and hollow.

"I want to help."

Draco snorted derisively, "Yeah, of course, Hero Potter here to save the day. Don't bother Potter; there are some people not worth saving."

"Don't say that!" Harry cried a little more sharply than he intended.

"Sorry to dash your Gryffindor sensibilities, Potter, but it is true. Some of us are too tainted for even your goodness to provide salvation. Some are just meant to be swallowed by the dark."

Harry took a step forward so that he was no longer in the doorway, but instead on the dark balcony with his mate. "Life isn't all about light and dark, or good and evil. There is good and evil in everyone. Even me and even you."

Draco stood and turned around, looking out over the castle grounds below. His voice sounded broken when he spoke, "Can you just leave. I need to be alone."

"No." Harry said softly, stepping up beside Draco, "I think you have been alone long enough."

"DAMN IT!" Draco suddenly exploded. He fisted his hands in his hair leaning his elbows on the stone wall in front of him. "I am such a coward!"

Harry was startled by the outburst and almost jumped away from the blonde boy, "No Draco you’re not...Draco is that blood?"

In all of the commotion, Harry had forgotten about the blood he had seen trailing up here. It wasn't until he saw the hands fisted in Draco's hair that he noticed the bloody trail left through the pale locks. Draco brought his hands in front of his face and stared at them as if they belonged to another person. His entire left hand was coated in thick red blood. Now that Harry looked around he saw a decent sized puddle and a bloodied knife where Draco had been sitting just moments before.

"Draco," Harry said softly as if approaching a wild deer, "let me see your hand."

Draco looked at him his anger fading into an expression of hopelessness and he swayed a little on his feet. Harry cautiously stepped forward and examined the bloody hand. There were no visible wounds. The blood seemed to be coming from further up his arm, but in the dark and with the darkness of Draco's robes Harry couldn't clearly see. Harry silently used his wand and levitated Draco's left sleeve up to his elbow. The state of Draco's forearm would have turned Harry's stomach if not for all of the experience he had with gore from his training with Madame Pomfrey. 

The entire inside of his arm was a mess of jagged, torn flesh. It even looked as if it may have been peeled away in places. Still visible in the bloody mess was a deformed dark mark imprinted on the pale flesh.

"Oh, Draco, what did you do?" Harry whispered almost to himself.

"I want him out of me," Draco choked out, clenching his fist and causing more blood to pump out of his arm. "I want him out but he is in too deep."

Draco started to sob again and Harry reached out, pulling the slender boy into a one-armed hug. Harry could feel every bone in the other boy's shoulders and spine. He had a momentary worry about Draco's dietary habits before focusing on the more pressing issue. "Draco, listen. I am going to take care of you, ok? I am going to heal your arm a little and then we will go see Madame Pomfrey and..."

"Don't bother. I came up here to...to..." He looked out over the wall and Harry's stomach plummeted and he somehow knew Draco hard come up here to end it.

"No, no. You can't want to die!"

Draco shook his head, wiping his eyes with his right hand, "No, I don't but I don't want to live my life...I couldn't do it anyway. I am too much of a coward. I don't want to die. I really don't want to!"

"Oh, thank Merlin!" Harry gripped his shoulder tightly, "May I heal your arm for you then?"

Draco looked at his arm in disgust, then up at Harry and nodded. 

"Ok, this will feel cold at first but then you shouldn't feel a thing." Harry cast a numbing spell over the area before starting the delicate process of closing the major blood vessels. Judging from the amount on the ground Draco had lost a lot of blood. He probably would not have lasted much longer without passing out and eventually bleeding to death. Harry worked quickly and soon had all of the bleeding stopped. The wound was still jagged and open, but Draco was out of immediate danger. "Alright let's go down and see Madame Pomfrey and she will get this patched up so well you won't even know it happened."

Draco jerked himself away from Harry's grip on his shoulder, "NO!"

"Shhh, it is ok, she will help..."

"No, no...I have to get away from here...she will keep me cooped up and he will get to me and then...and then...I have to leave." He was practically hyperventilating his eyes wide and dilated.

Harry reached out and grasped Draco's face in his hands, pulling him forward so that their foreheads were touching and their eyes connected. "Breathe, Love. Come on with me. Big deep breaths in and out."

Harry took long deep breaths, eventually coaching Draco to do the same. As he did his thumbs started to unconsciously stroke Draco's cheeks. This caused the other boy to relax more fully, his eyes closing to half-mast. The touch of his skin felt wonderful, like some exotic silk, and wherever their skin touched it was as if tiny static charges were discharging. If Harry hadn’t already come to the conclusion that they were soulmates the skin-on-skin contact would have let him know. 

At the first touch of that alabaster silk, it was as if something that had been writing in discontentment in his chest settled. Harry could have stayed in that position for hours, just lightly stroking his mate's face. Draco's eyes fell closed and he started to make a noise somewhere between a coo and a hum in the back of his throat. It was a moment of peace for both boys in a time of upheaval.

After a few minutes, Harry pulled himself out of his blissed-out daze. His mate was still hurt and was obviously in serious trouble. The urge to protect what was his welled strong in Harry's chest. Letting his fingers cease their stroking Harry pulled his head away a few inches.

"Draco," he called softly and watched as Draco's unfocused eyes blinked open at him, "Would you let me heal your arm the rest of the way? It may not be as pretty as Madame Pomfrey may do it, but I can manage."

Draco nodded, his eyes not quite losing that far away quality.

Harry lifted Draco's hand, intertwining their fingers as he waved his wand hand over the wound, stitching the skin together. It wasn't a perfect job, and the dark mark seemed distinctly lopsided and the skull dented. Overall, it was an improvement really. Harry banished the blood on the floor as well as the knife. "There that will do for now. How about we sit and have a good talk?"

Draco nodded again, and they sank to the floor, hands still entwined. 

They sat in silence for a few moments before Draco finally pulled himself together enough to talk. "Your my..."

"Soul-bonded, yeah. I figured that out."

Draco took a deep, shuddering breath, "I didn't think I would have one. I am not a real Veela, you know?"

"Umm, I don't really know anything. I am just kinda flying by the seat of my pants here. I didn't even know what type of creature my soulmate would be…but I could feel you." Harry squeezed Draco's hand, "I am glad it is you."

"You shouldn't be." Draco sighed, "My life is royally fucked up."

Harry laughed at that, "You realize that I lived in a cupboard until I was eleven, my face gets splattered across the news in scandals at least once a month, and I have a crazed maniac out to kill me. Believe me, I can handle fucked up."

"The Dark Lord is making me his concubine tomorrow," Draco whispered.

Harry stared at him flabbergasted, "What?!"

"Yeah, I am going to be the fuck toy of the Dark Lord. Bound by blood to serve his every desire." Draco's voice was whisper soft and hollow as if he had no hope of changing his fate. He started to cry again, quietly this time. Silent tears ran down his cheeks as he looked off into space.

Harry began stroking his thumb in circles along the back of his neck, "Tell me, tell me and we can fix it. I won’t let anyone hurt you."

"He and my father made a deal and have been working on it since this past summer. They performed a dark blood ritual that transformed me into a full Veela. The Malfoys have had Veela blood for centuries since we originate from France, but it is very diluted. After the ritual, the Dark Lord started me on potions that would trigger my maturity faster so he wouldn't have to wait until I turned seventeen. You see, he can't...touch me...until I am fully developed, or else it could damage the power boost that mating with a full Veela gives a wizard." Draco leaned into Harry's shoulder, "I don't want him to touch me."

"He won't." Harry felt fury burning in his chest that another planned on claiming what was his, "I won't let him. I promise Draco, I won't let him."

Harry let Draco cry into his shoulder for a while until he seemed to have calmed some. "Let's go talk this over with Dumbledore. He may have a safe place for us to go."

It was odd to so suddenly think of leaving school. Harry would never have even contemplated leaving Hogwarts before, but he knew with a soul-deep certainty that he belonged by his mate’s side, no matter where that may be.

"I can't leave the school. If I do my father can track my whereabouts since I am still underage. Hogwarts' wards block the head of a family from tracing their offspring, but if I step one foot off of school grounds he would sense it. And I can't stay here, twice now when I attempted to ignore the Dark Lord's summons his spies have planted port keys on me to take me to him. I have been using as many notice-me-not charms on myself as I can find but nothing has helped. I have nowhere to go and no way to hide." Draco did not raise his head from Harry's shoulder all while he talked. The contact seemed to be calming him a small bit.

"Maybe if we ask Dumbledore he will have a solution..."

Draco shook his head. "His resistance is riddled with spies from the Dark Lord. The old man is just too trusting and lets practically anyone join. It is only a matter of time before one of them imperious him, or slips him some veritaserum, or something."

Harry was shocked by this. The Order of the Phoenix had Voldemort's spies in it. Although, after Harry thought about it for a moment, it did make sense. There wasn't exactly an intensive screening process to join. Normally it was just the headmaster's word vouching for an individual, and everybody just trusted Dumbledore's judgment. The headmaster often acted as if he was omniscient, but he couldn't know everything. Hadn't Harry's own experiences shown that the man didn't even know what was going on in his own school most of the time? Every year people were able to sneak in right under his nose. Maybe he was going senile in his old age. Maybe he wasn't as fit to be a leader as everyone always thought. Wasn't one of the most important parts of being a leader recognizing your own deficiencies? Harry stored these thoughts in the back of his mind to mull over later and focused on the problem at hand.

Harry stroked Draco's shaking back soothingly, "So we can't leave the castle because your father can get to you as soon as we leave. We can't stay because Death Eaters can get to you here. And we can't go to Dumbledore because he is incompetent."

"There is no way out." Draco choked, "At least I got to meet you as my mate before he gets me. Do you think...do you think you could bond with me, so just once I will know what it's like to love my mate?"

"Hush, don't talk like that love. We will bond, but it won't be some rushed affair on the hard ground just so some maniac can rape you after. Let me think a minute." Harry kissed Draco's forehead, ignoring the tingles that talk of bonding sent through his body.

Harry and Draco clung to each other tightly as Harry tried to think of a way around their current predicament. Draco burrowed his face against the skin of Harry's neck, taking deep deaths as if trying to memorize his mate's scent. Harry could feel his soul bonded's tears soaking his robes. Harry felt his own tears welling up at the impossibility of the situation. He wanted to stay positive but he couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. He had just found his mate and felt so complete and wonderful holding him, and the world was about to snatch him away. As Harry's first tears escaped he pulled Draco's head up for a soft, sweet kiss. 

Tears still streaming, their lips met in the most wonderful moment of tenderness. Draco moved his hands up and gripped Harry's shoulders, rubbing small circles with his thumbs as their kiss continued. The kiss remained chaste, just a light press of lips and fluttering of eyelashes against damp cheeks. Harry felt like he was melting, languid heat pooling from his lips and where Draco's hands were resting on his shoulders. He could feel the warmth of each of Draco's fingers, except over the scar that marred his right shoulder and arm from his second year. The entire area surrounding where the basilisk fang had punctured his arm was mostly numb to the touch. 

Harry's head suddenly shot up, accidentally knocking his glasses askew on Draco's forehead. "I got it!"

Draco's flushed cheeks and glassy eyes almost made Harry forget his idea in favor of a few more, and deeper, kisses. "Believe me, Harry, there is no way for me to escape this place without my father being able to sense it!"

"No, we're not going anywhere!" Harry jumped to his feet.

Draco reluctantly stood, gripping Harry's arm for support. He seemed a little woozy and Harry worried about just how much blood his soul-bonded had lost. Harry wrapped his arm around Draco's waist in case the blonde's legs did not hold. "What are you talking about?"

"I will show you, but first we need to get you some blood replenishing potion before you pass out." 

Harry made sure Draco was holding the wall for support before he started rummaging through his bag that lay forgotten in the doorway to the tower. Tucked in a secret expandable compartment that he had charmed into the back of his bag was his marauders' map as well as his invisibility cloak. Pulling both out, he checked the hospital wing and saw that Madame Pomfrey was in her chambers adjacent to the infirmary. The entire wing had wards that would alert her to anyone's entrance or departure in her domain. Luckily, Harry had long since learned the way to circumvent her simple wards. In fact, he had been working on warding in his free time for months. When he was studying various shielding techniques, in one of the many defense books he was constantly reading, Harry became curious about the difference between shields and wards. His studies then led him to the possibility of using wards in a battle scenario and encouraged him to look more deeply at the fundamentals of how wards worked.

"Here, get under here and we will get to the hospital wing." Harry held up his invisibility cloak, still checking his map for teachers roaming the halls. When he glanced up at Draco it took a moment for his eyes to focus on his mate, as if he was faded into the background. He blinked a couple of times and the blonde came into focus and Harry realized it was Draco’s ‘Notice-Me-Not Charms’. That would explain Harry not idly noticing him in class. Sighing and grabbing Draco's hand, Harry tossed the cloak over them both. 

The cloak could just cover both of them if they squeezed together. Draco was taller than Harry, though only by a few centimeters, but Harry was much broader with muscled packed onto his frame from Quidditch and training. He and Ron had recently taken to spending much of their weekends sparing in the room of requirement. This extra physical exercise had done good things for Harry's build, building lean muscle on top of his quidditch-toned body. Rod, however, was looking more and more like a half-giant. The redhead was as tall as ever and with all of his muscle he looked as if he could tackle a bear. Despite that, Ron still managed to trip over his feet every other step and blush any time Hermione so much as glanced at him. 

Harry cast a slight featherweight charm on Draco so that, if he did suddenly topple, it would be easy to support him. Harry doubted if he would even need to charm, however, since Draco was practically just skin and bones. Harry wondered if his mate had purposely been starving himself, or if he was sick. It was a problem he would tackle later; right now he just had to deal with the problem at hand. 

Painstakingly slowly, he and Draco made their way down flight after flight of stairs. Draco kept a death grip on Harry for support and Harry was hyper-aware of Draco's every move ready to catch him should he stumble. It took nearly half of an hour to reach the hospital wing. Once outside the doors, Harry whispered to Draco to stay there and stay hidden, and with a quick peck to the pale cheek, Harry slipped out from under the cloak and into the hospital wing with only the briefest wave of his wand to defuse the wards. 

It was odd sneaking into a place that he felt so at home in. He spent so much of his free time in the hospital wing he knew every nook and cranny, and luckily, where everything was kept. It took only a few moments to charm open the locked potions cabinet. Harry didn't even use his wand, he had been practicing wandless unlocking charms in case he was ever captured and held prisoner somewhere. When one was being hunted by a dark lord it seemed prudent to be prepared. 

Harry grabbed two blood replenishing potions, a handful of calming draughts, and a few of dreamless sleep. Harry also nipped a few blankets, pillows and a hospital gown. He shrunk all of this, slipping it into his pocket and headed back to his mate.

"Draco?" He whispered to the seemingly empty hallway. An invisible hand found his and Harry sighed in relief. He had been half worried that Draco would wander off and pass out somewhere in the cloak and Harry wouldn't be able to find him. Slipping under the cloak again Harry held a blood replenishing potion to Draco's lips. Draco obediently guzzled the liquid without as much as a blink. Harry smiled at the trust his soul-bonded already had in him. "Relax a moment and let the potion start working. Then we will get you hidden."

Draco nodded and nuzzled his face into Harry's neck doing that cooing hum again. Harry guessed it was rather like a cat purring.

Harry took a few moments to run his fingers through Draco's soft hair, basking the comforting moment. Harry wondered if Draco was naturally this cuddly, or if it was the blood loss making him loopy. He hoped it was the former for Harry was enjoying the contact very much. 

After a few moments, Draco straightened and looked straight in Harry's eyes. For the first time that night, his eyes seemed perfectly clear and unclouded by the stupor of blood loss and fear. A wry smile quirkier Draco's lips ever so slightly the left as he said, "Ok, so what is the plan, Potter?"

Harry grinned at seeing some of Draco's spark back, and even better he hadn't let go of Harry's hand either. Harry started to jog, pulling Draco after him, "Come on I will show you! Oh, and Draco, since we are soul-bonded don't you think you should call me Harry."

"I suppose we could work out some kind of arraignment." Harry could hear the smirk in the blonde's voice and it made him grin broadly. He had been slightly worried that the blonde had lost himself completely to the horror that had become his life, but that old snarky, sassy, blonde that drove Harry to distraction was still in there.


	3. Where are we going?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Have the boys found a place to rest?

"You know, if you have to use the loo so badly there is a perfectly good gent’s loo right around the corner."

Harry grinned cheekily at his bonded, "I am aware, but we going to this loo."

"Why would we want to do that? Isn't this where that weepy ghost hangs out?" Draco looked aghast at the idea of entering a girl’s lavatory.

"Aww, just come on!" Harry pulled Draco through the door, forcing the issue. Once inside Harry slipped out from under the cloak, motioning to Draco to stay put and stay quiet, "Myrtle, you in?"

"Who is it?" A garbled voice came from one of the stalls. Evidently, she was relaxing in the bend of one of the toilets again.

"It's me, Harry."

There was a great splash and then Myrtle came barreling through her stall door, "Oh Harry! You hadn't stopped in yet this year!"

"I know, I am sorry Myrtle. It has been putting double hours in with my training. How have things been going with Nick?" Harry questioned.

Myrtle squealed, "He is just soooooo romantic. He is all chivalrous and knightly. He took me on a date to the astronomy tower last week. We had to scare out some Ravenclaws, then we watched the stars. I think he will snog me soon!"

"That is great Myrtle. So he is finally over the age difference?"

"I think so. He kinda backed down after I lost my temper a little and told him, in no uncertain terms, that I may have been a teenager when I died, but that doesn't mean I stay one forever. A ghost has needs you know!" Harry tried not to think of what those needs might be.

"Good for you! Now, Myrtle, I need you to do me a favor, and it is not a little one." Harry said conspiratorially. 

"Oo, what do you need Harry!" She was practically bouncing with excitement, which was an odd effect when the figure was hovering in the first place.

"I have heard a rumor that Draco Malfoy has gone missing. I need you to spy in the dungeons and see if you can find out anything interesting."

"That sounds like fun! Can I bring Nick along?"

"Sounds good, thank you, Myrtle!"

"Any time Harry!" She crowed as she darted out of the bathroom.

Harry sent a strong locking spell at the door then turned to the direction he assumed the cloaked Draco stood, "Should be all clear now."

Draco (only slightly to the left of where Harry assumed) pulled off the cloak, "I really hope your plan gets better than hiding in a girl's loo."

"Oh, it definitely does. Myrtle is a dear, but can't keep a secret to save her life...or well her afterlife...or whatever. Soon the entire castle will know you're missing and be hunting for you." Harry gave a surreptitious pat to his robe pocket to check if his Firebolt was still shrunken inside from Quidditch earlier that day.

"Isn't that a bad thing!"

"No, it will convince Lord Moldybutt that you have indeed run off and he will try looking for you elsewhere." Harry walked over to the last sink, polishing the faucet with his sleeve.

"Yeah, until I am found just standing in the middle of a girl's loo!" Draco seemed like he was about to lose it so Harry reached out and tugged him close. 

"Relax, my love," Harry softly kissed his temple then gave a low hiss and as the sink began to slide from the wall Harry jumped, pulling Draco along in his arms. 

Surprisingly enough Draco did not scream or yell at the abrupt plunge down a dark hole. All the blonde did was tighten his grip on Harry as they sped down the slimy tunnel. The landing was jarring, compounded by the fact that their limbs had gotten tangled on the way down. This resulted in Draco's elbow catching Harry's stomach and Harry's knee getting bent slightly awkwardly underneath them both.

Harry whispered the word "close" in parseltongue and was relieved when he heard the echo of the sink sliding back into place far above. Draco was still clutching onto Harry, his face buried in the stronger boy's neck. 

"Thanks for the warning." Draco groused, as soon as he seemed in control enough to speak.

"Sorry, I didn't want to give you a chance to talk yourself out of the plunge."

Draco relaxed his hold on Harry, although he didn't let go completely, and looked around at the pitch-black that surrounded them. "What is this place?"

Harry helped his mate to his feet and let him go in order to fish out his wand. Harry cast a bright Lumos, lighting the small area, "This, Draco, is the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets."

There was a soft thud and Harry whirled around to see that Draco had fainted. 

Harry knelt down beside the unconscious boy. Harry was unsure if he had fainted due to blood loss or just shock. He cast a mild enervate and watched as Draco slowly blinked his eyes open.

"Did you just say 'the Chamber of Secrets'! As in Salazar Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets?!"

"That would be the only one I am aware of, so yes." Harry helped Draco to his feet for the second time in the last five minutes, "I haven't been here since Second Year, but with the basilisk gone I figure it is a good place to hideout."

"A basilisk?!"

"It is ok, I killed it Second Year. But if you hear any hissing close your eyes just in case." Harry was sure the basilisk he met in Second Year was dead, but it seemed quite possible that Salazar could have stashed another somewhere. Harry began to lead a fairly dazed Draco down the pipe that led to the chamber. He made sure that the second batch of blood replenishing potion was still safely stowed in his pocket. He was sure that at least some of Draco's haziness had to do with his blood loss. He would still have to wait for another hour or so before administering another dose.

"Wait you killed a basilisk at twelve?" Draco asked shrilly.

Harry scratched his neck awkwardly, making the wand light bob and cast eerie shadows along the walls, "Well Faux helped...and of course I had the sword of Gryffindor..."

"Oh of course you did." Harry could hear the snark in Draco's voice and it made him smile again. He hadn't realized how much he had missed the blonde's sass this term.

Just then they reached the point of the cave in caused by Lockheart. Harry began to describe the happenings of their second year from his perspective as they climbed up and squeezed through the opening at the top of the pile. It had seemed bigger in the past, but then Harry realized he was much bigger now at sixteen than he had been at twelve. Draco seemed to have an easier time of it since he was considerably thinner than Harry. Once they were through Harry took Draco's hand again as he led on.

"Just how far is this place?" Draco whined. Some others may have found this rude, but Harry could see the absolute exhaustion underlying the blonde's complaint. Draco wasn't just whining, he was covering up that he truly couldn't continue much longer.

Harry kissed Draco's temple, "Not much further, love. Would you like me to levitate you the rest of the way?"

Draco sighed, "No, I can make it."

True to Harry's word, not two more minutes of walking brought the two boys to the ornately carved chamber. Nothing had changed in the years since Harry had last been here. Water still lapped over the path, giant stone snake heads lurking menacingly in the shadows. The basilisk was little more than a hulking skeleton with scarce strips of dried, scaled skin clinging to the bone.

"What is that!" Draco squeezed in fear, as the dim wand light danced around the skeleton making it seem to shift and move in the shadows.

"Don't worry love, it is just the remains of that old snake I was telling you about." Harry moved closer to the old corpse and then conjured a giant tablecloth to cover it, "I will get it out of here later. I am sorry if it bothers you."

"How did you kill that thing, it is freaking huge!"

"I will tell you the whole story another time. Let's see if we can get settled in somewhere." Harry looked around the large, damp stone room. It wasn't exactly homey, or elegant. Probably not quite up to Malfoy standards. "I suppose we need some better light in here."

Harry pointed his wand at the high, dark ceiling and focused on casting Lumos Maxima. It was a simple enough spell, but he had not yet had a reason to use it out of class. Luckily it worked on the first try and a huge ball of white light flew out his wand to float along the ceiling.

"Merlin! Scared of the dark, Harry?" Draco groused holding a hand up to shield his eyes from the blinding light.

"Huh, I guess I need to practice that spell more," Harry said glancing momentarily at the ridiculously large ball of light. The ones he had made in charms had not been nearly as large, or as bright. "Well, at least we can see now!"

The light didn't really help the atmosphere at all. Despite the miniature sun twinkling merrily in the rafters the chamber still held a gloomy, oppressive air.

"There isn't really much to it, but it is probably the last place anyone would think to look for you." Harry said, "I will sneak some furniture and stuff down here and we can maybe raise the floor so it is not as wet, and conjure some sort of walls eventually to make it a bit homier..."

"What are you talking about, Potter?" Draco said tiredly, "This is just an entrance hall."

"Huh? I thought this was the chamber."

Draco sighed as if he couldn't really believe that Harry was really that dense, "It is obviously just the entrance hall. All of the ancient pureblood castles have the same basic layout. This is a traditional entrance hall design. Note the tall columns and the intricate stonework. The Slytherin family guardian was the snake, hence the snake guards. The Malfoy palace grounds are similar in layout back in France, albeit a bit less soggy."

"Well if this is just an entrance, shouldn't there be a door?"

"Tradition would dictate that the main entrance be located beneath the family crest."

Harry looked around him carelessly, "Ummm..."

"Oh, for pity sake, right there!" Draco indicated one section of wall where the carved designs of the chamber formed a serpentine pattern nearly halfway to the tall ceiling. If it weren't for the ridiculously bright light illuminating the space it would have been completely concealed by the shadows. Even with the light Harry never would have picked it out as anything special.

"Do you want me to see if I can figure out how to open it, or would you rather we bunker down here for the night and explore tomorrow," Harry asked, highly aware of Draco's exhausted state.

"I would rather find a place that is a little less waterlogged if possible. But if we can't figure it out quickly we can make do."

Harry released Draco's hand so he could approach the wall below the crest. He ran his hands along it feeling for any fishers, or seams in the rock. There was nothing to feel but cool smooth stone. Taking a step back he hissed the word open in parseltongue. Still nothing. Harry looked at Draco with a helpless shrug.

"What did you just say?"

" 'Open.' Just like upstairs where it opens the sink." Harry explained. 

Draco looked pensive for a moment then looked up, "You are being rude."

"What?"

"You need to ask for admittance, you can't just tell it to open," Draco spoke slowly as if talking to a child.

"Ummm, ok." Harry turned back to the wall and hissed, "May we please come in?"

Nothing.

"Are you sure about this?" Harry asked.

"Of course not. Now did you ask for admittance?"

"Yes! I asked if we may please come in."

Draco smacked his forehead, "What are you, a muggle? Ask the proper way."

"There is a proper way to ask for a magical door to open?"

"Of course there is. Now, listen carefully to me. 'We humbly ask permission to enter the most noble house of Slytherin. We bare no ill will towards that most respected family.' "

"Seriously?"

"Yes, now quickly, my feet are getting cold from this water."

Harry repeated Draco's words in parseltongue and watched with a slackened jaw as the stone seemed to melt into a large open archway, "I can't believe that worked!"

"You obviously have no respect for custom." Draco sniffed, haughtily.

"It isn't like the school offers a pureblood etiquette class for those of us raised by muggles."

"This is why my family, along with many other pureblood families, have been petitioning the school to add one for generations. In fact, it is that exact loss of important customs that caused so many to first turn to the Dark Lord. Unfortunately, despite his preaching he knows little of the important customs, and he spreads madness like a plague."

Harry had to agree. It did seem that those who followed Voldemort became more and more unhinged as they spent more time under his regime.

"Well, do you think we should go in. I mean, it might be booby-trapped or something." Harry eyed the archway nervously. Little could be seen beyond but darkness.

"It is possible but unlikely. With a basilisk guarding the front door I think that Salazar would have felt safe enough. We should still keep our guard up though." With that Draco again took Harry's hand and both held their wands tightly as they approached the darkened space, "How about another of those lights?"

Harry obliged and cast another Lumos maxima. The hall they entered was surprisingly cheerful. Well, maybe not quite cheerful, but definitely a vast improvement over the intimidating entrance. The stone walls were interspersed with large beams of warm wood. Sweeping staircases lay to both the left and right, leading up to a large balcony. Four doors were open to the main hall, and a handful more could be seen upstairs overlooking the balcony. 

"Wow." Harry murmured as he looked around, "This is like an entire mansion under the castle!"

Draco opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by a thud that had them both jumping and turning, wands at the ready.

"Halt! Who goes there?"


	4. Halt! Who goes there?

"Halt! Who goes there?"

Draco burst into laughter at the sight that appeared before them. Wielding a spear that looked grossly disproportionate to its body size was a tiny house elf. It was clothed rather smartly, in a pressed green frock with elaborate silver embroidery, a crisp looking apron, and an ancient-looking knight's helmet. The helmet was far too large for the tiny creature and its ears stuck awkwardly out the sides.

"Umm, hi..." Harry tried to smile at the odd little creature but was rather sure that it came off as a grimace. He was pretty sure that he knew, at least by sight if not name, all of the Hogwarts’ house-elves by now. This little elf was definitely not one of the ones that he had met in the kitchens or around the castle. "I am…Harry and this is my friend. Is there anyone at home?"

Harry had not been expecting a house-elf, but he hoped that this did not mean that this place was occupied. It would not be good if he and Draco would need to look for a new hiding place.

"How did you find this place? Are you a Slytherin heir?" The elf’s attention had focused on Draco’s robes and on the crest stitched there.

"We came to find a sanctuary. We are sorry to intrude; we did not know people still lived here. We had thought that the house of Slytherin had been long abandoned. We will just go now…if it is possible could you not mention our visit to anyone." Harry pulled a still sniggering Draco toward the exit. "Please accept our apologies for intruding."

"Wait! Don’t go!" The elf’s spear dipped down again and it pushed the helmet mostly off, "You are not intruding. Are you Slytherin heirs?"

Draco spoke for the first time since they entered, "Can’t your magic sense if we are of Slytherin blood?"

The elf looked uncomfortable, "This house has been long forgotten and the magic it holds is all but gone. There is scarcely enough magic left to sustain me. I am a shame to my race, for without the house’s magic I can no longer perform my duties properly."

"We are not Slytherin by birth, but we will not hurt you or this house. We are just looking for a safe place to hide away where no one can find us. Would it be at all possible to stay here, just for a little while?" Draco was starting to sway a little and his gaze was glazing over again. Harry could tell that his mate needed rest, and more blood replenishing potion soon.

"I should not be permitting strangers to enter the house of Slytherin, but I am ashamed to admit that I do not want you to go. I…I have been alone for so long…I am not a good elf." Harry felt sorry for the elf, which was obviously on the edge of tears.

"If you would allow us to stay we would be very grateful. My mate is very weak and I need to take care of him." That seemed to clinch it for the little elf and she lowered the spear completely. 

"Are you soul bonded? I think I can sense that."

Harry smiled broadly, "Yes, we just found each other. Do house-elves have soul bonded mates?"

The little elf bit her lip, "I don’t know…I am a very bad and stupid elf."

"You don’t sound stupid to me," Harry said soothingly, "What is your name?"

"Whimsy, sir."

"Well, Whimsy, is there a place that I can let Draco rest for the night?"

Whimsy nodded and led him up the large staircase to the second floor. It was slow going with Draco, and by the time they reached the top Harry could feel the blonde’s hand shaking in his. Harry kissed his mate's knuckles whispering they would be there soon.

"Here you go, sirs." Whimsy said as she opened a large set of doors. "This was the little mistress's room and is the most ready for guests."

The room was beautiful. The walls were stone, but the ceiling was an intricately painted fresco of a forest glen full of wildflowers that swayed in an unseen breeze. A large four-poster bed that dominated the room. It too was carved with small, delicate flowers that seemed to climb on coiling vines. It was lovely, but the bedding was old and tattered. Harry reached out and touched it and it felt like the old material was about to turn to dust in his fingers. There were sconces on the walls for light, but the giant light from the entryway provided more than enough light to see.

Whimsy was wringing her small hands, "My deepest apologies my lords. The house's magic is nearly depleted, and I have no way of creating new linens."

Harry smiled at the little elf, "Not to worry Whimsy. I will take care of it."

Harry ushered Draco into a delicate-looking armchair and then started digging in his backpack. First, he plucked up the second blood replenishing potion and handed it to his mate. Draco took it immediately, laying his head back against the chair and closing his eyes. Harry gave his cheek a quick kiss then pulled out the pillows and sheets he had grabbed from the hospital wing. With a wave of his wand, he aimed a banishing spell at the old bedding...and promptly banished the entire bed. 

"Oops!" He stared at where the bed had stood in astonishment.

Draco's sleepy sniggers could be heard beside him, "Nice one Potter."

"I think something is wacky with my wand," Harry said, tapping his wand against his leg.

"Please tell me you remember the counter charm."

"Yeah," Harry carefully moved his wand in the needed movement. The bed returned to its original position, old bedding and all. This time Harry just removed the old sheets and coverlet by hand, trying and failing to handle them without tearing the ancient fabric. Giving up and tossing the shredded remains in a corner, he lay out the hospital sheet on the old sagging mattress. It was much too small for the large bed but he didn't dare try to enlarge it.

Harry then helped his mate to his feet and into the crudely made bed. Draco made another cooing-hum in his throat as he leaned against his mate’s side while crossing the room. Once Draco was settled onto the sheet Harry added a hospital pillow and blanket to the bed, tucking everything around his mate until he was as comfortable as possible.

"Try and stay awake until I can get you some water," Harry said as he brushed Draco's bangs away from his already sagging eyelids. 

Draco nodded and Harry turned to Whimsy, who was hovering in the door as if she didn't quite know what to do with herself.

"Thank you for everything Whimsy. If it isn't too much trouble could you show me where the kitchen is?"

If it were possible, the comment made Whimsy look even more awkward, "Umm, yes my lord, this way."

Harry followed the little elf down the large staircase, through a large formal dining room, and into a large kitchen. There was no stove or oven, but instead, three large fireplaces lay along one wall. A large trough sink took up almost another entire wall. Cauldrons and pans were neatly organized on open shelves and intricate fine china was displayed in glass cabinets next to the door leading to the dining room.

Not wanting to invade the little elf's domain Harry turned and asked where cups would be found. The elf rushed over to a nearby shelf and produced a delicate-looking china cup and a pitcher for water. 

"You wouldn't happen to have any tea as well? Something warm would do Draco well."

Whimsy looked terrified, "No, my lord. I apologize, but the house has no supplies left. It...it has been a very long time since anyone was here and all of the stores have long since been used up. I am so sorry, but I am unable to leave here and have no way of procuring new food. There is water though!"

Harry looked around the kitchen again. The fireplaces stood empty of fire, wood, and even ash. There was an entire set of empty shelves and empty glass containers. Indeed it looked more like a prop kitchen would in some museum. Then a thought occurred to Harry that had his stomach twisting, "Whimsy if you cannot leave, and there is no food, what do you eat?"

Whimsy knotted her hands together, "House-elves don't need to eat as frequently as humans. And we can get by on much less."

"But you have to eat something, you can't live on air."

Whimsy bit her lip, "When the house still had a little magic left we could conjure a little food. And before my father died, he taught me how to hunt the rats that sneak through the pipes under the castle...there is just enough for one elf."

Harry was sure his stomach had wound itself into a permanent knot at this point. "So you are...alone here? Alone in this old decaying place?"

Whimsy nodded dejectedly, "I am sorry I can't be of more service to you, my lord."

Harry reached out and patted the poor little elf's shoulder, "Hey, don't worry about it. I will get everything we need, and anything you need as well."

Whimsy's large eyes filled with tears, "You are generous, my lord, but I am not worthy of your benevolence. A house elf's purpose is to care for the humans that give them the honor of their home and magic. I have never been able to fulfill my proper purpose as a house-elf."

"It seems to me that it is a two-way street then. If you are expected to serve, then the people you serve ought to ensure that you have the magic and supplies you need. My friend Dobby is a house-elf and his former masters were cruel and unreasonable. I helped Dobby gain freedom and he is now enjoying some time free of people's rules."

"But if he is not bound to a magical family he will not have access to any magic!"

Harry smiled thinking fondly of his little friend. "He has some magical stores that will last him a little bit longer. After that, he has asked to be bound to me, unless he chooses to live a life without magic. I have also offered him a job if he wants to work without magic. My godfather passed away last year and left me this big, old house and Dobby may help me fix it up."

Whimsy seemed fascinated hearing about another elf and the world outside her closed off world. Harry wondered just how long it had been since she had talked to another living thing.

"If you like maybe I can bring Dobby here to meet you after I figure out how to keep Draco safe." Harry smiled a little at the look of wonder that crossed the elf’s face. It was as if she had never thought of seeing another house elf.

"I would hate to impose on you, my lord."

"It is not a problem, besides you letting Draco and I stay here for the night may just save his life, and for that, I owe you anything you could possibly want. Oh, and you can call me Harry."

"Would that not be horribly disrespectful, my lord?" Whimsy looked aghast at the very idea.

Harry chuckled, "Things have grown quite a bit more informal in recent years. Just how long has it been since you have had people here?"

Whimsy looked down sadly, "Well before my lifetime, I am afraid. The Slytherin family left this house, taking most of the house-elves with them about a thousand years ago. My great-grandparents and a few other elves were left to care for the house until the family returned…but none have."

"I can’t believe that your family just abandoned their house-elves like that!" Harry fumed, "That is just so wrong, you should treat any house-elves as members of your family. That is how I think of Dobby, and we aren’t even bound."

"You are a very kind wizard, My…Harry." Whimsy smiled at him, "Dobby will be a very luck elf."

"I think that I will be the lucky one, Dobby is one of the most loyal, generous, and selfless creatures I have ever met."

Whimsy grinned at his description, "I find myself filled with anticipation at the thought of meeting someone you hold in such high regard."

"Whimsy, I know that we have only just met, but if there is anything you ever want or need all you have to do is ask. You have helped Draco and me more than you know, or I can ever repay. I thank you. Now, I better get Draco that water before he crashes."

Before Harry could even take a step towards the glasses Whimsy had rushed over and grabbed a glass and was filling it at the sink. She offered to carry it up to Draco for Harry, but he declined and insisted that she rest after having an exciting day with two strangers barging into her home. She seemed reluctant to leave his side, which was understandable since she had been alone for so long, but Harry felt that he needed a little alone time with his soul bonded. They both needed a moment to relax, get settled, and talk. Harry’s mind was already bursting with half-formed plans, but Draco was a part of him now and he couldn’t form any ideas without getting his input. Besides, Draco was a Slytherin, and Harry would be a fool to pass up a chance to plan and scheme with the Slytherin prince.

Draco was propped up on pillows, his color looking slightly better already. He was looking at the patched skin covering his forearm as Harry walked in. He quickly tucked the mutilated mark out of sight as he caught sight of Harry, but Harry climbed onto the bed, placing the water on the bedside table. He pulled Draco’s arm back out from his side and kissed the recently mended skin. "Don’t hide from me Draco. Everything that you are is part of me, just as everything that I am is part of you. Now that we have found each other you don’t ever need to worry about being alone again. And if you ever feel like you did tonight, like you did on that rooftop, just tell me, and I will show you just how much your life means to me."

Draco’s eyes looked a little moist for a few moments before he blinked and muttered, "Soppy, Gryffindor sentimentality." But as he said it he was pulling Harry close for a soft kiss. 


	5. Settling In

Harry could tell that both he and Draco were completely exhausted when neither of them tried to deepen the kiss or take advantage of their close proximity. Instead, Draco just tugged Harry down so that he was lying beside his and their bodies seemed to naturally conform into an optimal cuddling position, with Draco’s head pillowed comfortably on Harry's broad shoulder. 

"Have some water, love," Harry whispered and Draco grumbling reached over Harry and gulped down a few mouthfuls from the glass. "Now a pain-relief potion, with all the turbulence tonight I don’t want you waking up with a headache."

Draco glared at him, but dutifully took the potion which had been sitting right next to the glass of water.

Harry smiled at the blonde’s glower, and kissed his temple as he snuggled back into place, "So what do you think of the hiding place?"

Draco snorted lightly, "A little dank, and dusty, but I suppose that it beats the alternative."

"The alternative being Voldi-Snort’s hideaway."

Draco winced and nodded, "And the company seems much improved here."

"Yeah, poor Whimsy! Can you believe that she has never actually met another person?"

Draco rolled his eyes and kissed Harry’s shoulder, "I was referring to you, you dolt."

Harry blushed, "Well, um, thanks."

Draco managed to smirk and yawn simultaneously, which, as it turned out, was adorable.

"You get some sleep." Harry said stroking the blonde’s cheek, "Don’t worry if I am not here when you wake up. I will have to get your supplies."

Draco looked up at his face looking slightly panicked, "You will come back."

"Always." Harry kissed his lips softly, trying to convey just how much he meant the words.

Draco relaxed and lay his head down, his chin on Harry’s chest so they could still look at each other and talk, "Like you could stay away if you tried. I have an arse to die for."

One of Harry’s hands skimmed down Draco’s back and gave the tempting muscle a quick pinch, "No argument here!"

The boys sniggered for a moment before settling back into a comfortable silence.

"Draco, how much do you know about house-elves?"

Draco snorted, "Is your Gryffindor heart bleeding over little Whimsy already?"

"Um, no, well yes..but that is not what I was talking about. Do you remember Dobby?"

Draco sniggered to himself, "Weirdest house-elf I have ever met. He was funny though, he used to keep me company when I was a kid. Father was pissed when you helped him get free."

"Well, Dobby and I are really close. We have talked about him bonding to me at some point, but I was wondering what your opinions on the matter where. I was thinking of asking him to bond with us now so that he could help us. Do you think that it is worth him knowing your location?"

Draco hummed to himself, "Most house-elves are loyal to a fault, but there have been cases of disobedience."

"I trust Dobby with my life, but your life is the most precious thing in the world to me and I won’t risk you for anything."

Draco smiled sappily for a moment at Harry’s words before refocusing, "I think that the benefits far outweigh the risks. As much as I don’t like to think about it, you can’t stay down here with me. It would draw too much attention if we both went missing at the same time."

"I was thinking much the same thing." Harry said forlornly, "I will come down here as frequently as possible though."

"We may have to find a different way to get you here then. You don’t want to get caught sneaking into a girls' bathroom." Draco sniggered. 

"I know that house-elves can apparate inside of Hogwarts, maybe Dobby can side-along me."

Draco hummed to himself, "I know that they can side-along, Dobby actually side-alonged me when I was seven and broke my arm out on the quidditch pitch at the manor. Father was not pleased, I think Dobby got caned for that, even though I was out in the gardens with mother and Dobby just happened to find me after I had snuck away and tried flying an adult broom."

"And you wonder why Dobby was chomping at the bit to get out of that house."

Draco shuddered, "He wasn’t the only one."

Harry rubbed circles on Draco’s back, "Don’t worry, Love, you won’t ever need to go back there unless you choose to."

Draco hummed, nuzzling into Harry’s chest. "Mmm, sounds like a plan."

Harry could feel his eyelids tugging down and could only imagine how tired his mate must be. "Let’s get some sleep, my love. I will stay until dawn, but I have to head out early to make it to breakfast."

Draco mumbled something that sounded like an agreement but may have been a yawn. Harry smiled to himself and snuggled into his mate’s warmth. There were going to be some serious challenges ahead for them, but Harry couldn’t be more content at the moment.

———

Harry woke up at the vibrating of his wand. It was scheduled to wake him at 5 o’clock each morning so that he could get in some early morning training before breakfast. He had no intention of leaving his comfortable spot even one minute before he had to. During the night he and Draco had shifted so that the blonde’s smaller frame was spooned safely inside his larger one. Harry burrowed his face into the soft blonde locks and couldn’t imagine a better feeling than this. Well, that was until his morning erection made itself known as it was pressed against Draco’s warm backside. Harry mentally groaned as he pulled away slightly. As much as he wanted to mate with Draco, something was telling him it wasn’t time yet. It was the same kind of feeling that led him to Draco in the first place. Not really anything specific, just a sense that it wasn’t right yet. It must be some sort of instinct like Madame Pomfrey had mentioned. 

"Do you have to leave now?" Draco’s soft, sleepy voice filtered past Harry’s hazy early morning thoughts.

"I have a little while before I will be missed." Harry said kissing the blonde’s hair, "Since it is Halloween and everyone will be running around getting ready for the ball, I will be able to slip into the kitchen for some provisions and bring them back down with me. Do you think that you can hold off until this afternoon for real food? I have some chocolate frogs in my bag, but I don’t think I will be able to get everything I need to bring down here until later without arising suspicion."

"I will be fine. I haven’t been able to eat much lately anyway."

"Why? Are you sick? Does your stomach hurt? Is it anything serious? I can run some diagnostic charms!" Panic made Harry’s well-organized plans fly right out the window.

Draco chuckled, "No I am not sick, I was just so sickened by the thought of…that thing…touching me. Every time I went to eat something I would imagine the way it feels when his hands would stroke my cheek, or lips…it made me want to puke."

Harry didn’t know to feel relieved that Draco wasn’t dying of some mysterious disease or angry at the thought of Voldemort’s hands on his mate. To appease both reactions Harry claimed Draco’s lips in a warm, but possessive, kiss.

"Did he ever touch you…intimately?"

"No, he said something about not wanting to unwrap his toy before he could break it in properly." Draco shuddered, "I saw some of the muggle boys after he had gotten through with them. They would be next to dead, bloodied and broken, when they were dragged from his bed-chamber."

Harry stroked Draco’s back comfortingly, "I will stop him, Love, I promise."

"How? I have seen him Crucio an entire room of Death Eaters without a wand!"

"It is destiny. It will have to be either him or me in the end. I may not be ready yet, but I will put everything I have into stopping him from ruining anymore lives." Harry pulled Draco in close.

"Couldn’t we just run, if we ever found a way. Just run and leave this crazy war behind us?"

"If you asked me to I would." Harry whispered, "But this is part of me. I have this feeling that we couldn’t run far or fast enough to escape it."

Draco burrowed into his shoulder and took a deep breath, "Ok, Golden Boy through and through, aren’t ya Potter?"

Harry grinned into Draco’s hair. Damn, but he loved that snark. "Are you horribly disappointed?"

That actually made Draco sit up and stare Harry straight in the eye, making Harry swallow slightly. "Harry Potter, I will say this once and maybe not ever again, so listen well. I have lived in fear of not being on your mind since the day I met you when we were eleven. I have loved you to the point of obsession for years and hated you to the point of loathing for never seeing past my walls. You alone can tie me in knots and make me feel ready to explode, with anger or passion, or sometimes both. Last night when I realized that you are me soul bonded made my world exploded and I felt happy for the first moment in longer than I care to remember. If there is one thing in this world that you never need to doubt it is that I will never regret any moment that I am lucky enough to have you."

Harry was floored by the blonde’s earnest and open words. He did not know how he could even come close to the eloquence of his mate so he didn’t even try.

"You will have me as long as I live." And Harry kissed him long and deep until they were both short of breath and pressed so close that their hearts seemed to be trying to pound through their chests to meet in the middle. 

A soft knock at the door had them separating and taking a few deep, centering breaths. Harry was glad that they were both still fully dressed and the results of their actions were mostly concealed as he stood and opened the door to a very timid looking Whimsy. 

"I hope that I am not being presumptuous, but I heard your voices so I brought you some freshwater. I know that my lord was feeling peaky last night and…and it is all I have to offer."

Harry smiled brightly at the little elf, "Thank you Whimsy. If you are not busy would you like to come in and talk for a moment?"

"As you wish, my lord."

Harry gestured at the chair in the room and sat back on the bed, but perched on the edge this time.

"Whimsy, I just wanted to make sure that you were definitely ok with us staying here. Your family may have abandoned this house, but that doesn’t make it any less your home." Harry smiled warmly at the elf trying to put her at ease, not sure if he was succeeding, "And remember, you can call me Harry."

"I thought very hard on your question this night, Lord Harry, and I would like for you to stay as long as you would like. It would make me very happy."

"Thank you, Whimsy." Draco’s appreciation was heard in his voice. Harry was a little shocked that the blonde sounded so authentic and open. It was refreshing to see this softer side of the blonde. 

"I also was thinking of inviting my friend Dobby down to stay with us if that is ok with you." Whimsy’s eyes seemed to perk up at that. Harry recalled the elf’s interest in his eccentric friend last night.

"The last I saw another elf was my father and he did not live past my childhood. I find myself excited by the idea of meeting a fellow elf."

Draco smiled, "You will like Dobby. He was a very fun elf to grow up with."

Whimsy smiled to herself, "I do hope so. I ever so like having the house open."

"Well, if you ever feel uncomfortable, or need anything just come to either of us. I will be bringing supplies with me tonight, and hopefully, Dobby will be close by and will be able to visit soon." Harry said standing and stretching. He bent down and kissed Draco sweetly, "I have to run so that I can make it to breakfast. Stay here and rest, ok love?"

Draco rolled his eyes but returned the kiss, "Worrywart. Don’t forget to give me those chocolate frogs!"

Harry laughed and dug the frogs and a half-eaten box of ice mice from his backpack before slinging it upon his shoulder. "I will be back as early as possible."

"I know Scar-head, I am just that irresistible."

Harry grinned again and gave him a final his before heading out. As he started down the stairs he heard Draco’s voice talking to Whimsy. "So have you ever played chess? And do you have a set tucked in this old place?


	6. Welcome to the Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Since my other epicly long fic has finally wrapped up, I have decided to start updating this fic twice a week! Thanks for everyone's comments, love hearing from y'all!

"Where ya been mate? I missed ya this morning." Ron’s loud greeting welcomed Harry to the table.

Neville grinned at him, "Let me guess, more training?"

Harry loved Neville sometimes. He always seemed to give him an out just when he really needed one.

"Yeah, I couldn’t sleep so I did some early flying and then hit the ROR for some jogging." He stretched his shoulders for effect and plunked down next to Hermione. "Oh, and Happy Halloween!"

Glasses clinked as the friends toasted each other, laughing. Harry smiled at his friends fondly. Part of him wished that he could tell them about Draco, but a much larger part of him was more concerned about keeping Draco as safe as possible, and for now, that meant keeping him, his location, and their relationship a secret. He trusted his friends, but his mate’s safety was too important to be left to chance.

"So, Harry, are you sure you are not going to join us at the dance tonight?" Hermione asked.

Harry snorted, "Count me out. I know when the third wheel needs to give the other two some space."

Hermione’s cheeks flushed slightly but she continued on, "Harry, you are always welcome!"

"I know Hermione, don’t worry. I got some stuff I want to get done anyway." Harry grinned at his friend.

"Alright, but if you want to join us, anytime, you can."

Harry chortled, "Oh, believe me, there are some things I definitely don’t want to see, much less join, you and Ron doing."

That got Hermione to go full Weasley red and Ron to choke on his mouthful of eggs. Harry laughed louder and grabbed an apple from the table. "I need to put some finishing touches on my charms essay. I will see ya in class!"

His friends couldn’t quite seem to manage a coherent response, which just made Harry laugh louder as he exited the Great Hall. Instead of heading towards the library Harry headed to a rarely used classroom down the hall. He pulled out a change purse that he always carried on his person. Inside was a collection of charmed galleons that connected him with all his friends. After the success of the galleons with the DA, they had personalized the coins so that they could be used for safe, untraceable communication. There was no risk of owl interception if one used the galleons and it was much more convenient, more like texting on a Muggle phone than anything else. 

Harry rooted through the coins until his fingers closed on the one that had Dobby’s name etched into the edge. Typing a quick message to his small friend, Harry then sat back holding his coin for the response. Instead, there was a sharp ‘pop’ and Dobby was standing before him, dressed in baggy green Bermuda shorts, a yellow and orange striped tank top, a teal hip pack, and pink sunglasses. Overall, a less eclectic look than his normal outfits. 

"Harry Potter was wanting to talk to Dobby?!" Dobby asked, practically bouncing on his feet.

Harry laughed, "Yes, how has your vacation been going?"

Dobby grinned widely, "Oh, I has been having much fun! I has to glamor as a child though and people keep asking if I have lost my mummy."

"Couldn’t you glamor yourself as an adult?"

"If Dobby had full magical stores it would be easy! But Dobby’s magic is low and being a child is much easier to changes the outside a little."

"That is part of what I wanted to talk to you about. Remember how we talked about possibly bonding you as my house elf a few weeks ago?"

"Yes! Dobby is very excited that Harry Potter may one day honor Dobby by letting Dobby become his house-elf." Dobby was practically jumping with excitement.

"I wanted to let you have more time to enjoy your freedom, but I have run into a serious situation and really could use your help." Harry shifter slightly awkwardly. He was never good at asking others for help.

"Dobby would do anything to help his best friend, Harry Potter!"

"I know you would, Dobby, you are a good friend. You see I have just found my soul-bonded…"

Dobby cut him off with a high pitched squeal, clapping and doing a little jig, "Congratulations Harry Potter!"

"Thanks, Dobby. There is a problem though." Dobby stopped immediately and looked serious for the first time since entering the room.

"How can Dobby help?"

Harry smiled, "I was hoping that you could bond with me and help me take care of my mate. We are in a difficult situation and they have to stay in hiding for a while to stay safe. I am not telling anyone but you about them."

"Dobby is honored that Harry Potter would ask him for help. And of course, Dobby will bond with Harry Potter! That is what Dobby has been wanting the most in the world since Harry Potter helped Dobby get free."

Harry smiled, he had missed Dobby the last few weeks while he had been traveling. The two friends had made a point to hang out a couple of times a week. Dobby had the unique ability to visit Harry wherever he was staying, whether he was at Hogwarts, the Dursley’s, Grimmauld Place, or the Burrow. He had even tried to teach Dobby to play quidditch, but the elf seemed to like speed too much and steering too little, and nearly gave Harry a heart-attack with his uncontrolled antics.

"Before you agree there is one thing that I need to mention, and if you change your mind about bonding with me that is ok." Dobby nodded solemnly and Harry continued on, "My soul-bonded who I need help caring for is Draco Malfoy."

To Harry’s surprise, Dobby didn’t gasp in shock, or act disgusted and repulsed. In fact, Dobby looked pensive for a moment, a rarely seen expression on the little creature’s face. After taking a moment to think Dobby smiled up at Harry, "Dobby is glad that Young Master Draco has found a safe place with Harry Potter. That house was so dark, Dobby thought that the dark would either eat up the young master or corrupt his little soul. Dobby didn’t think that he would be able to find an escape."

Harry was a bit staggered by Dobby’s truth and seriousness, "I was worried that you hated Draco like you do his father."

"Young Master is being cold and cutting, but only in front of others. When Young Master Draco is alone he is being just playful, but a bit bossy."

Harry laughed lightly, "Well he can be a spoiled git, but that is part of his charm."

Dobby nodded, "Dobby has no worries about bonding with Harry Potter and Young Master Draco. Harry Potter is Dobby’s dearest friend and Dobby would love to be the house-elf of Harry Potter."

"How do we go about this then?"

Dobby smiled, "Harry Potter must give Dobby a uniform and say the rights." 

"Where do they sell house-elf uniforms? I will have to sneak out and get you one."

"Dobby doesn’t know of such a place. Most masters have their elves wear whatever is in the rag bin."

"Dobby, would it be ok if I let you just wear your clothes. I like the way you dress, it shows your personality." Harry loved seeing just what Dobby would come up with next.

Dobby squealed in delight, "Harry Potter likes Dobby’s clothes?! Dobby can’t believe it."

"Can you just wear whatever you like, and that be your uniform?"

"Dobby thinks it would be alright. Maybe justs gives Dobby a small thing, like a pin, or something that Dobby can wear all the time."

Harry thought for a moment, "Oh I know!" Harry dug around in the secret pouch of his backpack until he found the object he was looking for. A miniature Probity Probe given to him by Bill. It was not quite as strong as the ones used in the ministry and Gringotts, but it would still detect if someone was using polyjuice or any other common concealment charms nearby. Harry explained how it worked before attaching it to an old pin he had floating around in his bag and charming it to have a stylized "P" for Potter on the front. "This way you will know that we are bound and it will help protect you from others. If this ever goes off you can come and tell me right away."

Dobby’s eyes lit up excitedly, "That is the most generous and wonderful thing! Dobby will treasure it always." 

"When do you want to do the rights? Will it take long to prepare?"

"Harry Potter and Dobby can be doing the rights now if Harry Potter is liking!" Dobby snapped his fingers and a parchment appeared with elegant writing across it, "Harry Potter just needs to read this out and give Dobby his uniform."

Harry quickly read over the scroll, frowning at some of the wording and language. Dobby would essentially be giving up his complete right to free will. If a master commanded something the elf would have to obey, even if that required excruciating pain or even death. "Dobby, this is a little harsh."

"It is the sacrifice that house-elves chose. No binding, no magic."

"But why? Why don’t house-elves have their own magic?"

"It is a longs and sads story, Harry Potter. Dobby will tell you if you like, but maybe better for later."

"Ok, Dobby, but is it possible to change some of this wording? I really don’t feel comfortable stripping you of so much of your freedom." Harry winced at the thought.

"Dobby trusts Harry Potter. Dobby is not worried. It best not to change any ancient magics, can cause big changes."

"Ok, so I just read this and then it is done?" Dobby nodded and Harry began to read.

There was no fanfare, no bright light. All that signified his bond with the house-elf was a slight tingling in his chest. Dobby however, beamed and practically glowed with happiness. Harry held out his arms to his friend, “Welcome to the family, Dobby!”

Dobby flung himself at Harry and squeezed. 

———

"Harry, you absolutely positive that you don’t even want to come to the feast?" Hermione asked for what had to be the hundredth time, or at least it seemed that way to Harry.

"I am fine, ‘Mione. I just want to get a nap in. If Voldemort has anything awful planned I could be up all night with visions and I want to be prepared." Playing the Voldemort card was a bit low, but Harry really wanted his friends to give him some space so that he could sneak away and get to his mate. He had already stopped by the kitchen and loaded up with all the food the house-elves would give him…which seemed to be enough for a small army. Dobby had assured him that now that they were bound he could access Harry’s vaults and purchase any food and supplies they would need, but Harry wanted to make sure everything got settled before he completely stocked their hideout. As it was he had asked Dobby to head to London to purchase a few things that he had thought of and he was going to meet Harry in Myrtle’s bathroom in half an hour. 

Hermione sighed but dropped the subject. "Ok, we will see you in the morning then."

"Yeah, I don’t expect Ron will be up for training in the morning so I am going to do some solo running, then I will be helping Madame Pomfrey with some ordering until lunch. I will see ya then."

"Don’t overdo it, Harry," Hermione cautioned, "Take some time to relax."

Harry gripped his chest in animated shock, "Did Hermione Granger just tell someone else to take time away from work to relax? Ron quick get a thermometer!"

Ron chuckled and swatted Harry’s head as he walked by muttering "Git," under his breath.

Harry laughed and his friends waved as they left the common room heading down to the Great Hall for the Halloween feast. Harry let out a sigh of relief and double-checked the supplied that he had grabbed for Draco were safely stowed in his magically expanded backpack. He then headed out towards the girl’s loo, eager to see his soul-bonded.

Harry checked to make sure that Myrtle was not in her bathroom before entering and calling for Dobby, who popped into existence a moment later. He was carrying a small box under his arm and smiling broadly.

"Did you manage to find everything?" Harry asked, he had tried not to overload Dobby with a long list, but there had been many essentials that he and Draco had needed.

"Yes, Harry Potter, Dobby is finding everything you is asking Dobby to find!"

"Thank you, Dobby. You are awesome."

Dobby beamed and Harry quickly led him over to the sink and opened it. Dobby followed Harry without question as he led them through the dark and dank maze that ended at the chamber of secrets. While walking Harry and Dobby spoke of the limits of house-elf magic and whether Dobby would be able to side along apparate Harry down to this area. According to Dobby’s senses, there were remnants of powerful wards that had once protected the chamber, but those had long faded. Harry guessed that they had faded along with the magic inside the house and left poor Whimsy without even that to aid her existence. Dobby guessed that he would be able to easily travel back and forth from the Chamber, now that he knew where it was. That gave Harry pause for a moment. Despite the fact almost no one knew of this place, both Voldemort and Dumbledore were aware of the location. And although it was unlikely that either would visit any time soon, it made Harry think about some possible countermeasures they should have in place. He would have to discuss his ideas with Draco and see if what he was thinking was even possible, much less a good idea.

As they reached the entrance chamber Harry realized that he had forgotten to mention something, "Oh Dobby, I almost forgot, there is another house-elf here. She has been alone practically her whole life, and since the house’s magic has faded to next to nothing she has suffered much on her own. She has been very kind and accepting by letting us stay here."

Dobby gasped, "That is a terrible thing to happen! Dobby will try and makes friends with her. She…she is not like Kreacher is she? Dobby would try to be friends, but Dobby has not liked spending time with Kreacher."

"No, she is not like Kreacher at all." Harry smiled, "I think that you will like her. She knows that I am going to invite you to join us and was excited to meet another house-elf."

Dobby smiled and nodded as Harry opened the entrance leading into the manor. 


	7. Dobby, meet Whimsy

As soon as the door was open Harry could no longer contain himself and went bolting up the stairs to Draco’s room. The bedroom door was open and he had to look around the room twice before he saw his mate sitting casually on top of the blankets reading a book that looked ancient, even by the house standards. Harry blinked twice wondering how he had missed his mate when he was sitting right in front of him. He had to force his feet to walk calmly to Draco’s side while chanting to himself, ‘I will not maul him. I will not maul him. I will calmly greet him like a rational human being.’ Then Draco saw him and smiled so broadly that Harry’s heart jumped and he tripped over his feet. He stumbled forward and practically fell into a kiss with his mate.

"I missed you," Harry said when he finally convinced himself to pull away enough to let them both breathe.

"Can’t handle nine hours without my dazzling presence?" Draco smirked.

"I can, but I don’t want to," Harry said, kissing the tip of his conceited boyfriend’s nose, making him scowl and wrinkle the appendage in a way that made Harry want to do it again. "If I had my way I would shrink you down and keep you in my pocket so I could talk to you all day."

"That would be nice, then I could eavesdrop on lessons too. I am going to fall so far behind missing school like this." Draco seemed genuinely upset about this and Harry frowned internally. Everyone knew that Draco was a perfectionist. He was always near the top of every class and his essays rivaled Hermione’s in length. Harry hadn’t considered how upset he would be about missing school. He would start bringing his notes down for Draco…which would mean that he would actually have to write legibly…somehow. Maybe he could buy something like the quick quotes quill Rita Skeeter used. Harry had turned into a decent student, but he often focused selectively in classes. He had very set goals at the moment, specifically staying alive, and medi-wizardry. If information wasn’t related to those two things he didn’t have the option of devoting much time to its study. 

"We will have to figure something out. Maybe I can steal Hermione’s notes for you." Harry wanted to keep his mate happy, and if that meant a little extra work, so be it, "So, how was your day? Did you rest? Are you feeling better? Do you feel up to eating? I know it is early for dinner but you haven’t eaten all day so…”

Draco chuckled at the line of intense questions, "My day was uneventful. Whimsy brought me some reading material, although she was adamant that I rest and not trek downstairs to the library myself. I am feeling much improved, and would not object to food."

Harry grinned and stood straight, "Do you want to eat here in bed, or would you like to venture out and see if we can use the dining room."

"I will likely go mad if I don’t get out of this room soon, so I would not object to stretching my legs."

Harry hovered worriedly as Draco unfolded himself from his position on the bed and stood. Draco rolled his eyes at the behavior but did not object, and once he was standing he walked confidently to the door. Dobby was standing there, obviously having given them space for their greeting. 

"Draco, you remember my good friend Dobby. Dobby agreed to bond with me and is now here to help us." Harry had a moment of nervousness as the two greeted each other civilly. Draco complimented Dobby’s vest, which was Slytherin Green, and Dobby smiled widely at Draco. 

"Dobby, have you eaten? Could you join us for dinner?" Harry asked.

Dobby looked as if he were going into shock at the proposal, "Dobby would being most happy to join Harry Potter and Master Draco. It woulds be an honor beyond compare!"

They started down the stairs and Harry spotted Whimsy peeking out at them from one of the side rooms. "Whimsy!" He called out, "This is my friend Dobby that I told you about. He was about to join us for dinner, I would be most grateful if you would join us as well. I have way too much food for just Draco and me."

Whimsy stepped out from the side room fully into the light from the lumos that Harry had cast the night before that was still burning merrily among the rafters. As she did so Harry heard Dobby gasp softly next to him before the little elf tripped over his feet and went tumbling down the stairs. The box he was still carrying flew up in the air and Harry caught it instinctively before reaching out with his hand, his magic extending out from his fingers and catching his little friend before he hit the store floor below. 

"Thank you, Harry Potter!" Dobby gasped as Harry lowered him to the ground with just a thought.

Harry was staring at his hand. He had been training in wandless magic for about a year now, but it was difficult and took concentration for even the simplest spells. And yet he had just caught Dobby without a wand and without thinking of a spell. Harry had avoided using his wand all day, remembering the odd actions of his magic the night before. Now he wondered if it was really his wand that had gone haywire or his magic. Harry looked up at Draco wondering if the blonde had any answers for the thoughts that hadn’t even coalesced into questions yet.

Draco looked as perplexed as Harry felt. The whole group stood in silence until Harry scratched the nape of his neck awkwardly, "Well, that is new. So let’s get dinner out."

Draco chuckled and continued down the stairs, "Only you, Potter, can do something amazing shrug it off."

"Well I am hungry and I can’t figure anything out on an empty stomach. Maybe after we eat I should test out what is going on with my magic."

"Sounds like a prudent course of action," Draco smirked and wound his fingers with Harry’s as they reached the open entryway. 

Whimsy was still standing awkwardly in the doorway as the small group approached. Harry smiled warmly at the little elf and asked again, "Would you care to eat with us? If not, you are welcome to anything we have."

Whimsy looked torn but she nodded, her eyes kept flitting to Dobby then away. Whereas Dobby seemed unable to tear his gaze from the petite elf for even a moment. Harry had a sneaking suspicion that romance may be about to bloom. That made him wonder about elf relationship dynamics. Did elves date? Did they get married? They obviously had to have children, no matter how long their life spans, which Harry knew were about twice that of wizards. Not wanting to think about elf procreation Harry focused his attention back on Draco as they entered the cavernous dining room. It was a bit dim and gloomy, but Harry was wary of setting off another Lumos with his magic so unstable. As if reading his mind Draco squeezed his hand and swished his wand. With an audible whoosh, all the ornate sconces and one particularly massive chandelier lit with a happy, warm light. 

Harry started to set the table with all of his goodies, but the horrified house-elves soon had manhandled him into a chair next to Draco and bustled around the table getting everything set up, Whimsy’s lack of magic apparent as she had to rely on Dobby to do anything that required placing in the middle of the table since she could barely even see over the edge. 

Harry contented himself with rubbing circles on the back of Draco’s hand. Merlin, he couldn’t seem to stop touching the blonde. The fact that Draco kept leaning into him, nuzzling into his side every few minutes, made Harry’s chest swell with happiness. He knew that things were still bad out there, there was a war, people wanted him dead, people wanted Draco hurt, and it all seemed to be resting on his shoulders. But right now, with Draco cuddled into him as much as the formal tall backed chairs would allow, Harry felt more at peace than he had ever felt in his life. 

When Harry noticed that Whimsy was about to run off for a second load of silverware he called her back. “I think we can do without the extras, just one fork, knife and spoon will do it. Let’s all just dig in!”

Their table was so full that Harry was sure they could have fed all of Gryffindor. The two elves sat across from the boys, on a few books Dobby had conjured with a snap. Harry made sure Draco was filling his plate before reaching for his own. They were all silent for a few minutes while they ate, Harry being sure to watch that both Draco and Whimsy were eating enough.

“So Dobby, where did you visit this summer? You were planning on visiting Spain, right?”

And with that the elf was off talking in his typical Dobby fashion, a hundred kilometers a second and bursting with exuberance. Even Draco chimed in with anecdotes about the places he had been. Harry supposed that he and Whimsy didn’t have much to add, but both were happy to listen as the others expounded. Somehow the conversation turned to the odd delicacies of the various wizarding communities that the two had visited, which dissolved into a debate on the merits of Italian Singing Clams that still hum even after being sauteed and evidently tickle on the way down one’s throat. 

Harry was equal parts amused and horrified at the conversation. Whimsy seemed horrified for an entirely different reason altogether as she tugged on Dobby’s bright orange sleeve. Dobby immediately turned obviously adoring eyes on her. She hissed softly, so Harry could only just hear her from across the table, “You can not talk in such a way to a wizard!”

Dobby smiled goofily at her, his adoring gaze leaving her momentarily to rest on Harry before finding her again, “Dobby’s master, the greats and most awesome Harry Potter, has assured Dobby that Dobby is to speak his mind on all matters. Harry Potter expects Dobby to be himself above all else.”

Whimsy didn’t quite know how to respond, and Draco came to her rescue, “And I appreciate Dobby’s candor. He was my family’s elf when I was a child and he made my lonely hours a bit less empty, even if I didn’t appreciate it fully at the time.” He ended apologetically.

Harry nudged him with his shoulder, “Don’t go back there, you are not to blame for how you were raised. It would have screwed anyone up, and look how you are moving past all that!”

Draco gave him a small, sad smile, “I can’t hide down here forever. I will have to face the world eventually, half of whom want to kill me for what I was and another half that will want to kill me for what I am now.”

“I won’t let anyone hurt you, and if they try I will blast them to bits,” Harry said honestly.

Draco curled into his side again and took a deep breath, “You might just do that if we don’t figure out what is going on with your magic. On that note should we clean up and retire to the library?”

“I will be taking care of the cleaning,” Whimsy jumped up instantly, but then looked at all the leftovers, “I may need some help with some stasis spells. Since the house’s magic is depleted the storage cupboards will not keep the food from going bad.”

Dobby jumped up, “Dobby is to be helping Whimsy. Do not be worrying, us will be getting everything away!”

Harry paused as he and Draco stood to head towards the library, “Whimsy, would there be a way to get the magic running in the house again? So that you could use magic?”

Whimsy shook her head sadly, “From what I have read when the house’s magic fully runs out it means that the house feels like it has been abandoned. Once that happens the house won’t accept any magic until it is claimed again.”

“The house feels abandoned?” Harry asked.

Draco sighed, “Most magical dwellings have a certain level of sentience. The more of a magical concentration that the house contains the higher the level of its consciousness. It is not quite the same as the consciousness of a person, but the house will have a certain awareness and if the magical concentration is high enough to be able to interact with its inhabitants. This is the driving force behind many of Hogwarts' more magical features. The castle is aware of the people inside of it and is able to anticipate some of their needs. Merlin, this educational system is leaving huge gaps in foundational knowledge!”

Harry grinned broadly at his nerdy blonde. He was starting to see his point, but couldn’t help the warmth that bloomed in his chest when Draco’s ‘Hermione voice’ came out. He was so distracted it took him a moment to process what Draco had actually said, “Well, how does one go about making a house feel claimed?”

Draco blinked, “Um, I don’t know the specifics…”

“Well, it is a good thing we are headed to the library. Come on, I will see if I can conjure some tea without flooding the building and you can look up...those house specifics…” Harry waved his hand vaguely. 

Draco snorted, but grabbed Harry’s hand and interlaced their fingers. Harry beamed at the blonde, a pleasant tingling shooting up his arm. Part of him wanted to say screw the library, and drag Draco upstairs for a serious snogging session, but the more strong urge was to make sure the blonde was safe and protected. Neither of those things could happen until his magic was acting properly and the house had some protection on it. So to the library, it was....and maybe a little snogging session after they got some work done.


	8. Wait, Who was Cursed?

Before they got started with any magic testing or old tome scouring, Harry sat Draco down and took his pulse and checked his eyes. He couldn’t do any diagnostic spells, but he was relieved to feel Draco’s pulse strong and his eyes clear. The blood replenishing potions had done the trick. Draco was still horribly underweight, but that would take time and he had eaten a good amount at dinner. 

“Will I live, doc?” Draco huffed with a small smile playing around his lips.

“Like I would let you do anything else.” Harry said with a quick peck to Draco’s lips, “Like I could let the perfect mate go.”

Draco flushed crimson, which forced Harry to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing delightedly. He didn’t think he would escape unscathed if he laughed at Draco’s blushing.

“Twat,” Draco muttered under his breath, “Now summon me a quill.”

Harry grinned and stepped away, “Ok, ok. Let’s see what happens.”

He pulled out his wand and took a deep breath. 

“Accio quill,” A quill zoomed from his backpack and Harry quickly grabbed it as it sped toward him, “Well that was anticlimactic-”

*Thunk* 

Harry looked up and a large, ancient-looking eagle feather quill was sticking out of the wood of a bookshelf behind his shoulder.

*Thunk*

Harry only just ducked as a peacock quill zoomed through the door narrowly missing Draco’s ear.

“Get down!” Harry shouted, needlessly as it turned out since Draco was already throwing himself face-first at the carpet. 

Thirty seconds and half a dozen more quills had both boys staring at the collection of quills embedded in the woodwork. Harry sighed, for one brief moment he thought that his magic had settled down. 

His sigh turned to a groan as long, cool fingers threaded into his hair and gently scratched at his scalp. Harry’s body instantly tried to melt into a puddle of goo as his muscles relaxed. 

“So that was smooth, Potter.” Draco drawled, his snarky tone at odds with his soothing touch. Harry laughed in delight at his mate’s attitude. He was so glad that Draco was still Draco.

Harry reluctantly sat up, Draco’s fingers slipping from his hair, “What do you think is going on with my magic?”

“Well let’s outline the facts…” He said, easily summoning a parchment and ink, grabbing the quill that was still held in Harry’s hand.

“Nerd.”

“Shut up. Now, what exactly is happening?” Draco said without batting an eyelash.

“My magic seems to be...overenthusiastic?” Draco raised an eyebrow at Harry’s descriptor but didn’t pause in his note-taking.

“And when did you first notice it?”

“Last night, when I tried to cast a Lumos and seem to have created a permanent sun.”

Draco nodded, “And where were you?”

“You were with me!”

“I was a little dazed last night, I don’t want to trust my recollections alone.” He sniffed haughtily, but Harry could sense the insecurity under the surface and scooted closer so their shoulders were pressed together as they sat on the floor looking at the parchment.

“Alright, we were in the entry hall thing, out there.” He pointed in the general direction of the entrance to the house.

“Ok, and the second time you noticed it acting oddly?”

“Vanishing the bed in the bedroom upstairs.”

“Next?”

“Um, catching Dobby without my wand. I don’t even know how that happened! It kind of felt like the accidental magic when I was a kid, but different, more controlled?” Harry fought to find the correct word for the sensation.

“Did you experience much accidental magic as a child?”

Harry smiled at Draco’s clinical tone, he would be great at gathering patient histories if he were a healer. Harry was always too eager to jump right into fixing the problem and could miss important information if he wasn’t careful. He and Madame Pompfree were working on that trait. “I didn’t grow up in the wizarding world so I don’t quite know what is considered a normal amount.”

“The average wizarding child will have at least one or two episodes of accidental magic by the age of ten or so. Those that don’t are normally taken to a magical specialist who can examine their core and see if their magic is developing normally. Those who are more magically powerful could have as many as four notable instances. I had three.”

“I don’t know...I wasn’t particularly aware of them when they were happening. I was good at escaping or hiding, I had a tendency to end up in new places and not know how I got there. My hair growing overnight, that was probably magical. I think I shrank some clothes a couple of times. Then there was that incident with my teacher’s wig and the snake at the zoo. Oh, and of course blowing up Aunt Marge. How many is that? I don’t know if all those were magic, or if there were more I don’t remember.”

“You blew up your aunt? Like an explosion?”

Harry laughed, “No, more like a balloon. I mean, she was so fat to begin with, at first we didn’t even notice she was inflating.”

Draco seemed a little stunned, “Umm, at what age did that start?”

“Uh, I have been doing to escaping thing as long as I can remember...the rest kind of scattered about since I was..fiveish?”

“Merlin, you were apperating before you were five?”

“I wasn’t apperating. I would just be running so my cousin and his friends couldn’t beat me up and then I would...be somewhere away from them. Like back in my cupboard, or a roof, or the bathroom at school.” He said with a helpless shrug.

“Harry that is apperation!”

“Umm, ok.” Draco sighed and went back to scribbling away at his parchment.

“Alright, when did your accidental magic stop?” 

“Pretty much the moment I started school here. Except for the Aunt Marge thing, that was right before Third Year.”

“Hum,” Draco scribbled some more, “Was there anything notable about that experience?”

“Uh, well she was insulting my parents,” Draco nodded for him to continue, “And I got really mad. I was like...vibrating I was so upset. Then it was like a dam broke in my chest and poof. Up she went.”

“And nothing has happened since?”

“Not really. Was any of that helpful?”

“I don’t know yet, we need more data.”

“Nerds and information.”

“Don’t get cheeky.” Draco set aside the parchment and stretched his back, “Why are we sitting on the floor when there is perfectly good furniture right over there.”

Harry laughed as they got up and moved over to a fragile-looking sofa, “No idea. So what next, more tests? Or do you want to research about adopting an abandoned house?”

Draco thought for a moment, “Let’s take some time to mull over the information we have so far and see if we gain any insights if any new incidents occur. For now, let’s focus on some research. You look up fluctuations in magical core strength and I will look up magical home transfers.”

Harry looked around the massive room, filled with ancient books, “I wonder if Whimsy knows the organizational system in here.”

“When the house was operational they probably had a house-elf that was specifically assigned to the library. In the more traditional homes, each library would have a library elf that would be in charge of indexing and filing. There is a chance that Whimsy is aware of such information.”

Harry smiled at the mouthful of information, that probably could have been said with a simple, ‘Possibly.’

“You rest here and I will go find her and ask,” Harry said popping to his feet.

“You know you could just call Dobby and ask him to fetch her.”

“I can’t let myself get too lazy. I didn’t really want Dobby as a servant or anything, he is my friend. More like family than anything.” Harry paused in the doorway, “Thank you, by the way, for treating him so well today. It is important to me.”

Draco flushed and nodded, “I know. I am trying to drop some ingrained habits.”

Harry trotted back over to him and bent over the back of the sofa to give his lips a peck. “Don’t lose them all. I am rather fond of some of them.”

Draco scoffed, “Like what?”

“Like the way, you wrinkle your nose when you are bothered by something, or the way you never back down from a fight, or the way that you nibble on your quill tip when you don’t think anyone is paying attention, or the way you make sure all the first year Slytherins get a fair shot at the best desserts, or…”

Draco’s hand shot out and covered Harry’s mouth, “You have a vivid imagination Potter, now don’t you have a house-elf to be fetching?”

Harry giggled and kissed one of Draco’s pink cheeks before trotting off towards the kitchens.

“There it is,” Whimsy pointed to an absolutely massive tome sitting on a shelf near the library entrance, “My father said that before the Library Elf, Flinly, passed on he recorded all of the books in the library in this book. He sorted them, alphabetically by title, then by author, then grouped them by subject in this section. Once you know the title you would like you should be able to summon the book.”

“Thank you, Whimsy.” Harry smiled at the little elf, “This is exactly what we needed.”

“Is there anything else I can help you with, sir?”

“I think we can manage, although if you and Dobby want to help us research you are welcome to it. Four sets of eyes are better than two!”

———

For the next few hours were spent with all four of them curled up in various pieces of furniture, around a merrily crackling fire (provided by Dobby), with books scattered across just about every available surface. So far very few of the books contained anything that would help them with their two most pressing problems, although Harry had found a reference to a very interesting hex that would temporarily freeze a person’s magical core thus stopping them from performing any magic for a few hours or until the hex was lifted. 

Harry felt as if his eyes were trying to cross as he read, a side effect of the translation spell that converted the Latin and Old English texts into a more usable dialect. Of course, Draco didn’t need the translation spell, so he was saved from rubbing his eyes every other minute. Nerdy git! 

But, Merlin, he was a bloody gorgeous, nerdy git. His color seemed like it was a bit better, and his energy seemed improved as well. Harry didn’t want to think of what would have happened if he hadn’t sensed the blonde was in trouble. The thought of not having the blonde by his side was horrifying. It should feel odd that his entire world had shifted in the span of one night, but it didn’t really feel like it. It felt like this was inevitable, like no matter what paths their lives had taken they would have ended up right where they are now. Curled up together on a faded couch, limbs comfortably intertwined. 

Harry wondered what the future held for them if they got through this mess of a war. He could picture them going into business together, setting up a little healer practice. Draco could run the apothecary and make all the healing potions, and Harry would run the surgery. Draco obviously had a methodical mind. The way he had gathered the background on Harry’s magic made Harry realize he would be brilliant at collecting patient medical histories. 

Harry thought back to Draco’s face when Harry was describing blowing up his aunt, his expression floating somewhere between amused and horrified. Thinking back on it now was purely amusing, but at the time Harry had been too terrified to find it funny. After all, the incident had happened the summer right after Harry’s first time in the Chamber of Secrets and… 

Harry froze, “Draco, remember how I told you about that accident with my aunt?”

Draco looked up from his book, “The inflation, I remember.”

“Well, that was the first bout of accidental magic I had since I had started Hogwarts.”

“As you said,” Draco nodded.

“Do you think it was a coincidence that that happened the summer after our second year? Right after I came down here for the first time...and now my magic is out of control, right after the second time coming down here.”

Halfway through Harry’s question, Draco started to look excited, and by the time he finished Draco had closed his book and was practically bouncing, “That sounds like a promising train of thought, I am surprised you came up with it Potter.”

Harry pulled a face at his mate, but Draco only smirked and leaned in for a soft kiss.

“So you think something down here is effecting my magic?”

“It is possible…but my magic seems stable. Dobby, have you felt any changes to your magic since coming down here?”

Neither Dobby nor Whimsy were reading, as they listened to the wizards and Dobby perked up when he was addressed, “No Young Master Draco, Dobby is feeling normal, but Dobby’s magic is working differently from wizard magic.”

“Yes, but it may be important that whatever is happening is leaving you and me unaffected and only having an impact on Harry.”

“Excuse me, sir,” Whimsy tentatively spoke up, “But is it possible that you were cursed before entering the entrance hall?”

It took Harry a moment to realize that she was referring to the room in which he had fought the basilisk that Draco had told him was actually an entrance hall, “Umm, I don’t think I was.”

“Why do you ask, Whimsy?” Draco asked curiously.

“I do not know how to adequately describe it, but I can show you. If you would follow me.” 

“Of course!” Harry said, jumping to his feet and stumbling only slightly as he untangled himself from Draco’s legs, “Lead the way.”

The group found themselves slogging through the waterlogged foyer until they reached the center, very near to the covered skeleton of the basilisk. Whimsy, who was up to her ankles in the water, was studying the submerged floor of the room closely as she walked. “Here sirs,” she said pointing down into the water, “here it is. If my knowledge is correct this removes curses, to prevent anyone entering the house whose will is not their own.”

Draco and Harry stepped over to her and looked down. Even with the light from the ridiculously large Lumos that still hung in the air, the water was still dark and murky. But, as Harry squinted, he realized that there was some sort of rune etched into the floor. It was much too complex to be seen clearly through the water, but there was definitely something there. Harry was never good with runes, even the simple ones he had to study closely to see differences in the shape. Harry theorized he had undiagnosed mild dyslexia, that spotting patterns and subtle changes challenging. 

“Can you tell what it does?” Harry asked Draco. He was pretty sure that Draco took ancient runes with Hermione, so he should have a much stronger basis in this sort of stuff than Harry did.

“The water is obscuring the details too much. The overall shape seems to be one for protection, but there is a good deal of intricacies that I can’t make out.” 

“Do you think you could cast a bubblehead charm on the floor? Make it big enough to cover the rune and reach the surface so we can see down inside?” 

Draco thought about that and nodded, “I should be able to manage it if I change the root for head to ground or earth it may work.”

It took a few attempts and some changing of the Latin conjugations but after about fifteen minutes the boys were peering in the bubble and studying the symbol in detail. 

“I think you are right Whimsy, it seems to remove the effects of any curse placed on a person. All you would have to do is walk over this spot and you would be returned to normal. It is a very intricate spell to create such a rune, it must have taken decades of study. I can’t believe that it was never published!” Draco was not the type of person to show when he was impressed with something easily, so his enthusiastic admiration showed what a feat this rune was. 

“So that means I was under a curse, and now I am not? How is that even possible?”

Draco’s giddy mood evaporated and he glowered darkly, “I have a theory and I will tell you when we aren’t soaking wet.”

“Let’s tuck in bed then,” Harry said, leading the way back into the manor.

“It is early yet,” Draco whined.

“We don’t need to sleep,” Harry assured him, “We will just spend the evening bundled up under the covers and talk.”

That seemed to please Draco, especially as he had started to look a little blue around the edges from the chill in the air and water. 


	9. Cuddles and Theories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I leave you on a bit of a cliffhanger here! If you want to hold off until the next chap is posted to read it you can! (Although, the next chap is INTENSE so it isn't much of a relief)

By the time they slogged back up to their claimed bedroom, Draco’s teeth were chattering and he was shaking. It was easy to forget just what bad shape his mate was in and Harry inwardly cursed his inability to use his magic properly. He was worried a simple warming charm could possibly incinerate his boyfriend. He settled for helping Draco out of his wet trousers and bundled him into the bed. Harry stripped out of his own jeans and joined the blonde under the thin covers, pulling the other boy to his chest. The cool bite of the pale skin almost made Harry wince as he was pressed against his warm skin. He wished they had access to a hot shower. 

They had discovered that, although massive and ornate, the Slytherin Manor was lacking in a few basic modern facilities. The bathrooms were one of those areas that were in desperate need of updating. The manor did not have anything like a modern bathroom. The current facilities consisted of one room, more of a closet really, that had a cold stone slab with a black hole leading down to who-knew-where. There were no sinks, no showers. According to Whimsy, there had once been a large wooden tub that was moved from room to room for bathing as needed, but it had long since fallen apart with time. It probably would have been better if the houses had still been running with its ingrained magic but as it was, the set up was less than ideal. Harry supposed that was the price you pay at finding a thousand-year-old safe house. Still, he was grateful for their unexpected refuge. 

Feeling Draco’s shivers start to subside, Harry breathed an audible sigh of relief.

“Stop your worry, Potter,” Draco huffed but snuggled closer to the dark-haired boy.

“When you gain a stone and a little color, then I will stop worrying,” Harry said, nuzzling behind the blonde’s ear.

Draco laughed, “You will be fretting for a lifetime if you are expecting me to gain any color. I am as pasty as they come.”

Harry trailed a finger across Draco’s cheek sadly, “Your skin is normally like perfect porcelain but right now it looks like rice paper, thin and near transparent.”

Draco winced, “Sorry.”

“Nothing for you to be sorry and ashamed of, my love. You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen, I just want you healthy and happy,” Harry said pecking his cheek then pressing a soft kiss to his lips. The soft kiss quickly dissolved into something a bit deeper and before Harry knew it he was more on top of Draco than not.

When they broke apart both had wide grins and were feeling much warmer.

“Alright,” Harry said, flopping off the blonde, “what was your great epiphany about my little curse/lack of curse problem?”

“Well…” Draco hesitated, “I think…I think you are incredibly powerful. I am talking like Merlin powerful, Harry.”

Harry laughed, “I think I would have noticed if that was the case, love.”

“I am serious!” Draco insisted.

“I am maybe slightly above average at best. I work bloody hard and only perform moderately better than most other students on practical magic. You should know that you are gobs more talented than I am magical,” Harry said with a soft smile.

Draco was shaking his head as Harry spoke, “No, I think you have been cursed, cursed since you started attending Hogwarts, maybe even before that. I think some curse was put on you dampening your access to your magic. Obviously not blocking it completely but limiting it.”

“You think it was Voldemort? Maybe when he tried to kill me as a baby?” Harry said fingering his scar. Could he have been living under a curse since he was a baby?

Draco was shaking his head again though, “No, I don’t think so. I don’t think you would have had such intense bursts of accidental magic as a child if it had been bound earlier. My guess is that someone bound it when you started school.”

Understanding was dawning on Harry, “And the seal lifted the curse in Second Year…but no one realized it until after I was home for the summer and I accidentally blew up my aunt. And whoever cursed me realized that the curse had somehow removed and they must have replaced it.”

Draco nodded, “It makes sense, yeah?”

“But why? And who?” Harry groaned, “If someone was out for me, why not just kill me? They obviously had the opportunity. Or why not just block all of my magic?”

Draco spoke carefully, “Unless they needed you alive. Unless they needed you for something. Unless they were intimidated by what you could be.”

Harry froze, Draco’s words sinking in, “You think it was Dumbledore.”

Draco looked away but nodded, “I’m not sure of it…”

“…but it makes some sense.” Harry finished for him when he trailed off, “Bloody hell. It does make some sense. Fuck!”

Draco turned his crystalline eyes back to Harry’s, “I honestly don’t think he is evil.”

“Just manipulative, incompetent, and potentially insane?” Harry asked angrily, voicing his own feelings at the moment. He wasn’t mad at Draco and Harry hope his love realized that it wasn’t directed at him. 

Draco nodded calmly, letting Harry have his moment of frustration. 

Harry sighed, flopping back onto the uncomfortable bed like a starfish. He stared up at the ceiling as if in hope it would hold answers. It did not. “Well, what the hell are we supposed to do now?”

Draco pillowed his head on Harry’s shoulder, “Harry, you are the most powerful wizard that has been born in a millennia. You have something inside you that could put the Dark Lord and Dumbledore to shame. We are not helpless.

“We need to be wise, we need to be careful, we need to think and take our time, but we have everything we need in each other.” The blonde propped himself up so he could look directly in Harry’s eyes as he continued, “I truly thought there was no hope for me. I thought that there was nothing in this world that could rectify all the twisted corruption that is choking it from all directions. The dark, the light, the law…all are backward and selfish. But you, Harry Potter, are a beautiful battering ram of justice. I can feel the thrum of our future calling us and you are going to force the world to fix itself so we can have it.”

Harry watched his soul-bonded in awe. Those ethereal grey eyes sparkled with hope and life Harry had never seen before. Draco’s faith ignited something inside Harry and he found himself believing every word that fell from his perfect lips. Harry didn’t know if he really was all that Draco said he could be but he would give everything he had to try and make that future his love wanted a reality. 

Harry pulled the other boy down in for a deep kiss that had them both panting in minutes. His whole being was thrumming and the bare skin of their legs sparked where they touched. Harry could feel the effect their kiss was having on both of their bodies, matching erections tenting thin underwear and pressing tantalizingly together. 

Their hips started a delicious rub and slide that had their kiss devolving into little more than a press of open mouths as they started to gasp and pant. Harry could feel Draco’s body start to tremble and quake as the blonde’s movements started to grow slightly more frantic. Little ‘ohs’ of wonderment were gasped from those sweet lips and Harry was lost in watching his mate so close to tipping over the edge. Harry’s own need was thrumming in his ears and he had never felt so close to release without having the wave crash over him. 

But the wave wasn’t crashing. Harry’s toes curled and he swore he was about to cum any moment but the moment wasn’t coming. Draco’s trembling was increasing and his movements more frantic. The sweet little moans were becoming whines of frustrated need. They were so close…so close.

“Fuck,” Draco gritted out almost helplessly, his hips humping against Harry almost animalistically as his voice devolved into a pleading whine, “Please, please, please, please…”

Harry groaned but reached out and stilled the blonde’s frenzied hips, holding them still against his own. Draco whimpered and practically collapsed on top of him, breathing heavily.

“Shhh shhh,” Harry soothed pressing light kissed to the other boy’s brow, moving his hands to soothe down that too boney back.

Once freed, Draco’s hips did one last involuntary thrust as he ground out in trembling defeat, “I am so close…so fucking close!”

Harry hushed him again, “I know, I know. Me too.”

Draco whined again and curled into Harry’s chest and Harry’s blood seemed to pulse with an echoing beat of, ‘soon, soon, soon’.

“I think…I think the time just isn’t right,” Harry said, “I mean technically you haven’t reached your inheritance yet, right?”

Draco huffed into his shoulder but nodded.

“We might…we might need to wait until your birthday.”

“Oh fuck that, my birthday is in fucking June! I am not waiting six months to get your dick up my arse.” Draco griped.

Harry chuckled, continuing his soothing petting until Draco was once again relaxing onto his chest, “You are worth the wait if that is what it takes.”

Draco sighed, “The potions the Dark Lord was force-feeding me to speed up my inheritance. I think I would have been made to take one more tonight to trigger the final aging process.”

“Evil git,” Harry huffed pulled Draco tighter to his chest, “It doesn't matter. When it feels right it will be right.”

“Unless my dick falls off from neglect,” Draco muttered bitterly.

“I would love you anyway,” Harry laughed, kissing Draco’s grumpy head. “And is there anything stopping you from having some special alone time?”

Draco shrugged, “Haven’t really been in the mood lately. Can’t even remember the last time I got off honestly.”

“Well, let’s not worry about it. We have a lot of shite on our plate right now and a hiatus on sex does not need to be one of our major concerns.”

Draco whined, “Are you sure you are sixteen and not, like, two-hundred? Lack of sex should be our number one concern.”

Harry tickled Draco’s side, “Don’t be mean. Let’s get some sleep, no one is going to miss me tonight since they are so distracted with the dance.”

Draco huffed but cuddled close, “Do you still need to wake up at the ass-crack of dawn?”

Harry chuckled, “I normally do, yes. I shouldn’t let my training slip just because I would rather be snuggled up with you. I also have a session with Madame Pompfree scheduled tomorrow afternoon.”

“With Madame Pompfree?”

“Yeah, for advanced healer training,” Harry admitted, “I got her to take me on as an apprentice years ago.”

Draco blinked at him, “You are just full of surprises.”

Harry laughed, “It is surprising that I would rather heal people than hurt them?”

Draco chuckled lightly, “No, it is just that you could literally do anything. With your fame and fortune, you could literally live as a playboy for the rest of your life and instead, you start slogging through healer training before you even graduate.”

Harry shrugged, “I didn’t ask for any of that and I am not scared of hard work.”

“You are pretty amazing, even if this does mean you wake me up every morning at some ridiculous ungodly hour,” Draco said with a kiss to Harry’s chin.

“I will try to come down for lunch tomorrow though, we need to figure out this magic thing before I have to perform any spells.” Harry sighed, “I know on some level having all this power will help us, but until it is under control it is a bloody inconvenience.”

Draco sniggered, “And it will get worse once we mate.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t you remember? The whole reason the Dark Lord went through the trouble of turning me into a full Veela is for the power boost. Veela-Human pairings are so common in part because wizards are greedy and like the elemental power that is added to their own by mating a Veela. That and they are quite stunning when in human form.”

“You have always been stunning,” Harry said, nuzzling Draco’s hair, “So distracting in class when I was trying to pay attention.”

“You are such a sap,” Draco chortled, then sighed, “You might not think that once I come of age and the first time I get pissed about something I grow a freaking beak.”

Harry tilted the blonde’s face up to meet his eyes, “I will love you no matter your form, Draco. And I can’t imagine a beak and some feathers will mar the perfection that is you.”

Draco rolled his eyes, but Harry could see the pleased flush on his cheeks.

One last soft kiss had their eyes closing and sleep falling swiftly.

————

_ ‘Where is he?!’ A familiar venomous voice echoed through the chamber. _

_ ‘We are having trouble locating him, my lord,’ came the reply from a kneeling figure on the floor, long white-gold locks giving away their identity, ‘No one in the school can find him.’ _

_ ‘I want my prize, Lucius. You promised him to me as payment for your failures.’ Bone white fingers reached forward stroking down the pale cheek of the prostrate man before him, ‘If you can not get him to me this night I will be very displeased. He was the one gambling chip you had left.’ _

_ ‘I am sorry, my lord. We will find him. I have all our supporters in the castle searching for him. Since the scan did not find him we can only assume the old man has figured your plan…’ _

_ ‘Crucio!’ Screams filled the large chamber until the spell lifted, ‘If I can not have my prize, I will ensure he does not fall into the hands of another.’ _

_ Long fingers pulled aside dark robes and pressed into the mark that pulled the pale skin. _

_ ‘But my lord…’ the blonde cried, his eyes focused on the mark. _

_ ‘No, Lucius. Your family has disappointed me for the last time. I see now that taking your wife from you was not enough, now you will lose a son as well. Don’t worry, I could draw this out all night but I will make it quick for him, after all, it is nearly midnight and I do not plan on wasting this night. After all Lucius, you promised me a companion for the night. I am sure I have some de-aging potion in my stores…it won’t nearly be as satisfying as a virgin Veela, but if you act real sweet you may just survive the night.  _

_ The blonde on the floor shuddered, ‘Please, my lord, I will find the boy.’ _

_ ‘Too late, Lucius. I find my patience with your failures has been worn out.’ _

_ ———— _

A cry of agony wrenched Harry from the vision and he awoke to the sight of Draco writhing in pain. 

“Draco!” Harry gasped quickly sitting up and reaching for his screaming mate. Draco was clutching his forearm, his face distorted in horrible pain. 

Harry forced his sleep fogged mind to work combining the information from the vision with the scene in front of him. Voldemort may be doing something to Draco’s mark. 

Harry grabbed Draco’s flailing arm, “Draco, love, I need to see the mark.”

Draco’s cries continued to fill the air and Harry doubted that he could hear, let alone understand, Harry’s words. 

Harry cursed mentally and pinned his writhing mate, wrestling his arm free from the grip of his other hand. The sight that greeted him was not good. Black tendrils were spreading from the mark below the skin as if a dark poison was being spread through Draco’s bloodstream. “Fuck!”

“Harry Potter, sir?!” Dobby’s squeaking voice sounded from the doorway but Harry didn’t lookup.

“Thank, fuck. Dobby something is wrong. Can you hold him still?” 

“Yes, Harry Potter. Dobby is helping hold Master Draco,” and with a snap of Dobby’s fingers, Draco was stock-still but still screaming.

Harry wanted to pause and soothe his mate but he couldn’t waste the time. Ripping open the sleeve of Draco’s shirt Harry traced the black veins up Draco’s arm nearly to his elbow now. The fingers of Draco’s hand the skin below the mark were looking dark and shriveled, making Harry’s stomach wanted to heave. 

“What is happening?” Whimsy said, clamoring up beside them on the bed.

“I think Snake Face is trying to kill him,” Harry cried, his voice cracking as he tired to process it all, “Fuck, he is killing him!”

It was impossible to think and tears were already clouding Harry’s vision.


	10. Dittany and Veritaserum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, y'all want the good news or the bad news first? Good news, ok!
> 
> Good news, I already have the next chap written so it will be out next week.
> 
> Alright time for the bad news, I was hit by a freaking scooter while I was walking my dog (not like a kid scooter like a mini-motorcycle scooter). I now and the proud owner of a fractured clavicle and recently dislocated shoulder...aaand of course that means my right arm is now bound to my side for the next few weeks. I am horrible at typing with my left hand and my 'actual job' is now taking me for flipping ever. I will write and post as I can but expect things to be a bit slower for the next few weeks. On top of that, since I had to go to the hospital for treatment, I am under full quarantine for the next two weeks in case of virus exposure and am supposed to stay in my room away from the family. *Sigh* 
> 
> Be safe and well and look out for men on scooters!
> 
> This chap has some warnings for a certain medical procedure. If you are squicked out by that sort of thing I will add details in the end-notes and you can go prepare yourself before you read.

With one breath and a swallow, Harry got himself back under control. Panic was not going to help right now. The black withered skin was slowly creeping up Draco’s fingers and the pulsing dark veins continued to creep under his porcelain skin. He had to slow the spread and he  _ needed help _ . His mind immediately went to Madame Pomfrey but he didn’t know if she would have enough knowledge about the dark mark and her allegiance to Dumbledore would stop her from helping someone with the mark. A better option might be…

“Dobby, can you bring Snape here? Tell him to bring his healing kit. Fast.”

“Yes, Harry Potter,” Dobby said and was gone in an instant. 

“Whimsey, rip me some fabric strips from the sheets. It looks like the magic is moving through the bloodstream, I will try slowing it with a tourniquet.” Harry said, tracking the slow progress of the darkness through the veins, branching out ever further from the mark.

Whimsy squeaked and the sound of tearing fabric was heard under Draco’s intermittent cries. Harry took the moment to try to soothe his mate, stroking his cheek gently. It was heartbreaking when there was no reaction, Draco’s eyes remaining squeezed shut, his face a grimace of pain. 

Whimsy handed the strips of linen and Harry wasted no time in wrapping it tightly around Draco’s arm.

“I need a stick or something…” Harry muttered, trying to secure the twist of fabric tighter without enough leverage.

There was a crack and Harry looked up to see Whimsy had smashed a stool against the stone ground and was holding out a spindle.

“Perfect,” Harry said, grabbing it and quickly twisting it in the fabric to pull it tight and then securing it with another strip, “Alright, I don’t know if that will help, but is it something.”

Indeed the progress of the black veins seemed to slow but the withering skin of Draco’s fingers now seemed to engulf his whole hand, making it look almost mummified. Harry fingered his wand but was wary to cast even any diagnostic spells with his magic so out of control. He felt helpless and sick and if it had been an option he would have broken down by now but he couldn’t afford to lose it now.

There was a loud pop and Dobby appeared with a scowling Severus Snape. 

“Potter what is the meaning…” He started but Harry cut him off. 

“Voldemort is trying to kill Draco through his mark. Do you know how to counter it?” Harry said quickly but clearly, gesturing to Draco.

Snape’s eyes widened and Harry could see the dawning horror and the man quickly stepped up to the bed. His dark eyes tracked over the exposed arm, the blackened hand, and over Draco’s tortured visage. 

“Potter,” He choked out, “There is no counter for this.”

“Unacceptable,” Harry snapped, sounding more like the potions master than the man did himself, “Tell me what you know of the mark and this process.”

Snape looked taken aback momentarily but quickly straightened, “The mark is applied in a ritual with a combination of spells and potions. The ritual ties the person, blood and bone, to the Dark Lord through the mark. When he…when he takes a life this way he releases the dark magic stored in the mark and it…it eats the person alive.”

“The blood and bone were used in the ritual as binders?”

Snape again looks surprised by the question, “Yes.”

“That means that the dark magic is contained in the blood and bone until released by Voldemort.”

As Harry spoke, Snape swept a hand over the blonde’s contorted face and the look of pain in the normally stoic man’s face was evident. “Correct, Potter,” he sighed in hopeless resignation as if barely listening to Harry’s useless prattling.

“Then we take the arm,” Harry said matter of factly, “We remove the tainted blood and bone from contaminating the rest of his body.”

Harry started rearranging Draco’s stiff body while Snape stared at him in shocked horror. 

“The tourniquet has slowed the spread, which means that the success of an amputation is possible since it is tied to a physiological aspect of his anatomy. I am sure old Baldymort thought the effect very dramatic but it will give us enough time. My magic is out of sorts so you will need to do it.”

“Potter…what…”

Having finished arranging his mate, Harry turned and glared at the normally competent man, “For fuck sake, Snape, pull it together. We need to cut his bloody arm off before it is too late and if I try to do it I will probably end up literally cutting him in half. Do you want to save your godson’s life or not?”

That seemed enough to get the man moving, “Of course!”

“Then let’s get started.” Harry snapped, “Have you performed an amputation before?”

“No but I have some knowledge of the topic,” Snape said, starting to rummage through his bag.

“Here, let me do that…You start running a cadence diagnostic and prepare the skin for the severing charm.” Harry said, reaching for the bag of potions. 

“Potter do you even…”

Harry glared again, “I can’t do the magic but I can locate the needed potions. Use our time wisely, Snape.”

“Fine!” Snape handed over his bag with a huff and Harry quickly got to sorting out the potions they would require.

He muttered to himself as he placed each on the bedside table, “Essence of dittany, Murttlap Paste, Revival Potion, Blood-Replenishers, Wound Cleansers…Snape, do you think we should use a sleeping draught or just a muscle relaxant?”

Snape huffed from where he was studying the diagnostic diagram, “Let us use both, there are no adverse effects of the mix and using both in conjunction will ensure his muscles remain flexible.”

Harry nodded, “I will administer them now which means we can start in the next two minutes, are you ready?”

Snape nodded and Harry coaxed the fluid into Draco’s clenched mouth with softly whispered praise, “There you go, love. Don’t worry, I will make sure you get through this. Be strong…I love you.”

He looked up to see Snape’s sharp, assessing gaze watching their interaction but he didn’t comment, and honestly they had more pressing matters at hand. The shriveled skin had reached Draco’s writs and the black veins seemed to throb under the pale skin.

“According to the diagnostic, the black magic has not reached passed here,” Snape said indicated a place just above Draco’s elbow, “I will make the incision just above that point.”

“Before you begin, replace the linen tourniquet with a magical one. I fear the fabric is not strong enough to have stopped all the blood flow. And if you conjure me some swabs I can cauterize the exposed blood vessels while you work on reshaping the bone.”

“Very well,” Snape said and with a wave of his want the improvised device was removed but the skin remained squeezed by the force of the spell. An additional wave and a box of cotton swabs and gloves appeared, “Potter, you will not faint as soon as we begin, understood?”

Harry would have rolled his eyes if the situation wasn’t so dire, “Sir, I practiced removing spleens from corpses’ abdomens, I am unlikely to get squeamish over an arm.”

Snape simply nodded and they both looked down as Draco’s tense body suddenly went lax.

“Alright, let us begin,” Snape said and raised his wand as Harry snapped on gloves.

The next fifteen minutes were mostly silent, the two dark-haired men working in tandem over the blonde. Snape was sure in his motions and Harry was easily able to clean, apply, and administer portions and antiseptic as needed. The only moment that was almost too much was when the arm was finally fully severed and Harry picked it up to move out of the way. In second, holding his mate’s detached limb in both hands, it fully struck him just what they were doing and Harry had to take a breath to recenter himself and get right back to work. He would have time for some sort of existential crisis later. 

Once Snape closed the skin over the newly formed stump and Harry coated it in Dittany and bandages they both let out a tense breath in unison. Harry soothed the hair back from Draco’s face and looked at his serine sleeping form. He could barely stand to think his next words, let alone say them, “Do…do you think it worked?”

Snape ran a hand over his face in an uncharacteristic show of distress, “I don’t know Potter, we will have to see if any of the dark magic got though and if it did if it is powerful enough to continue to contaminate his system. But…but I know you have given him a chance. It didn’t occur to me…I would have let him…”

Harry didn’t look back at the obviously distressed man, choosing instead to place his focus on Draco’s steady breathing, “I couldn’t…can't lose him, sir. He is everything to me.”

They all just stared at the slow rise and fall of Draco’s chest, before Harry turned to Dobby and Winky who had kept busy keeping everything clean as they had worked, disposing of used swaps, bandages, and, thankfully, the detached arm. “Thank you both for everything you have done, please go get some rest. Dobby, I will call you when Professor Snape needs to leave or if Draco’s condition worsens.”

Once they were alone, Snape stepped forward and stood next to Harry looked down at the pale figure, “When he was born…he was so small. He almost didn’t survive birth. I was brought in to treat him and had to stay for weeks. He lived more on potions than milk.”

Harry moved to sit on the bed beside his mate so Snape could pet the boy’s pale hair.

“His mother insisted I be named his godfather since it was my treatment that gave him life. I tried to explain that it was a horrible idea, that all those close to me meet a horrid fate, but it was for naught. He was put under my care and look what nearly happened to him…”

Harry winced at the outpouring from the usually stoic man, “Professor, this is not your fault. As I see it you have been more a victim of this stupid war than nearly any living person. The truth of it is the only people to blame for this are the two sides of a war that are willing to hurt and ignore the innocent victims that block their ambition.”

They were both silent for a few moments before Harry continued, “Sir, may I ask you something?”

Snape snorted, “I believe you just did, Potter.”

Harry gave in to the compulsion to roll his eyes this time but continued, “I would like to know, if push came to shove, which side of this war would you find yourself on?”

Severus closed his eyes and Harry could almost see him trying to settle his stoic mask in place.

“I ask, sir, because I feel that we both may be ill-suited to either.”

Snape blinked at Harry in a way that showed nothing of his thoughts, “What makes you say that, Potter?”

Harry looked back down at Draco and brushed his hair off his forehead again, “Although you try to hide it…we both put people ahead of an agenda, I feel that both sides have little regard for the wellbeing of others.”

Rather than answer, Snape looked around for the first time. “Where is this place?”

Harry shrugged, “Safe, that is your only concern for the time being.”

Snape momentarily looked like he was going to argue the point but let it pass. They sat in silence a few moments longer, just staring at Draco’s still form. 

“You…you said something was wrong with your magic?” Snape asked, sounding a little hesitant.

Harry sighed, “My response to that, is unfortunately linked to your response to mine. Without knowing where you stand, I can discuss the matter no further.”

Snape glowered then he sighed, his gaze not leaving the blonde boy, “My place is with him. I failed him in these recent months, I won’t do so again.”

Harry nodded in acceptance and pulled a small clear vial from Severus’s bag that he had noted earlier, “My trust in these times is hard-won, I am afraid. If you consent to a half drop first, I will return the favor.”

“A half drop of Veritaserum will give me no compulsion to answer your questions.”

“I don’t need to compel you. This is an exchange of truths, freely given. The serum will ensure truth of about 5 minutes, yes? But with such a small amount the choice to answer any question will still be our own.” Harry said, shaking the bottle, “Do we have a deal?”

Severus hesitated but nodded and Harry uncapped the vial and very clearly administered the small dose to his own tongue before handing the vial to Severus where he repeated the process.

“There, now we can be assured of at least a certain amount of truth and, I for one, vow to speak plainly so as not to try to outwit the serum. If I choose not to answer something I will tell you such, not try to evade. Would you are to ask the first question?” Harry said, leaning back against the headboard, Draco’s remaining hand held in his own.

“Very well, can I trust you?”

Harry blinked at the surprising question but allowed himself to answer naturally, the potion allowing the truth to flow freely, “I would say in most things, yes. All that I have said tonight is truth and will continue to be unless you prove to be untrustworthy. Do I lie? Of course, I am human, but I do believe you can trust me in all things that matter. But do not trust any reason I may give for turning in incomplete homework…” Severus actually quirked an almost smile and nodded as if satisfied and it was Harry’s turn to ask, “Do you feel trapped?”

Snape made an on choking sound and turned away and for a moment Harry did not think that he would answer before he whispered, “Every day.”

“Your turn,” Harry said softly.

“Who are you loyal to?”

Harry smiled down at Draco, “I am loyal to Draco Malfoy in all things. I am loyal to my friends in spirit, although I have not included them in on all the changes in my life recently. I am loyal to my principles and my ideals and I am unwilling to compromise what is right for what is easy,” Harry looked up to meet Snape’s onyx eyes, “What would make you happy?”

Severus brows furrowed, “Why would you care?”

Harry smiled and answered truthfully, “Because I would like to care about you. You are important to Draco, you were important to my mum, and you have saved my arse more times than I care to think about. We have never got on but I think that is due to circumstance and I would like to change that if we can.”

“You want to care about me?” Severus looked gobsmacked. 

“Yes.” Harry answered simply, “Will you answer my question?”

“Peace. Peace would make me happy.” Severus admitted but is sounded bitter, “Why are you doing this?”

“That is a little vague, professor,” Harry smirked, “And you are usually so precise. Why am I asking you questions? Because I am trying to understand you. Why am I answering your questions? Because I want you to understand me. Why am I bothering with any of this? Because I want this war to end and the wizarding world to stop seeing everything as black and white. Because I want a safe place for Draco and me to start a life together.”

Severus inclined his head, “There is probably only time for one more question, Potter.”

“I know you are often forced into various roles and that is not what I am talking about. I know you have often been put in positions to make hard calls and there hasn’t always been a right and wrong. I already trust you with both our lives or I would not have brought you here. I trust you with my life but can I trust you with my truth? Can I trust you to keep what I reveal to you this night as secret as you can?”

Snape looked away again but answered with, “I hope so.” 

“Thank you, sir.” Harry said, “I know doing that was risky for you.”

“No greater a risk than you took yourself,” Snape admitted.

They were silent a moment before Harry spoke again, “Should we try to wake him?”

“Let’s allow him to rest a bit longer. It is a good sign that there has been no change in his vitals since we completed the surgery and there no longer seems to be any trace of the dark magic.” Snape said, studying the diagnostic runes still present above the bed. 

Harry sagged a little, a small bit of the tension leaving him. That small loss of tension, however, had him wavering on the edge of emotion. He suddenly wanted to curl into Draco and sob for what he had just done. To distract himself from his impending meltdown, Harry just squeezed Draco’s hand and turned his attention back to Snape.

“So…”

“Before we continue this talk, I would feel more comfortable if you were to don some proper trousers.”

Harry flushed bright red, he had completely been oblivious to the fact he had been scrambling around in his boxers this whole time. It was true his baggy shirt covered everything but…it was mortifying, “Oh gods, I am sorry, sir!”

Harry jumped from the bed and grabbed his pants from the floor. Finding them still wet, he fumbled into his bag where he had stored multiple changes of clothes and nearly tipped over in his haste to get into a fresh pair. 

Once Harry had settled again, his face still burning slightly from embarrassment, he started again, “So…you want to join Draco and me in forcing the world to shut-up and shape-up?”

Severus pinched his brow, “I can not just renounce my place in this war on a whim, Potter.”

“Sure you can, sir. As painful and loathsome as your lot has been, I am surprised you haven’t just said, ‘Fuck ‘um’ and taken off. A lesser man would have abandoned ship ages ago. But you are not a lesser man, professor, and I believe you have been trying to do the right thing in a war with no right side. Well, I am tired of being a pawn in the game of egomaniacs and I think the wizarding world deserved a side that gives a shit about their lives and doesn’t see people as a means to an end.” Harry ranted, finishing with, “Pardon my language.”

“Potter, we just cut off a boy’s bloody arm together, I don’t give a flying fuck if you swear or not.”

Harry sniggered, hiding his face in Draco’s hair. “I suppose that is a cause for some leniency.”

“Indeed,” Snape agreed and then sighed, “If I am to speak candidly with you, Potter, I do not doubt your sincerity or your belief in your cause but I can not imagine such as position would be effective. Two teenagers against the world with nothing but grand ideals is very romantic and a lovely story but in reality it is delusional.”

“I didn’t say we had nothing but ideals and I didn’t say it is just us…although technically the latter is currently true if you don’t count Dobby,” Snape’s droll stare made Harry think he indeed did not count the elf, “But…”

Harry was cut off by a tussle of blankets and a shift beside him. He looked down to see Draco’s eyelashes starting to flutter.

“Sir, you may want to have a calming drought handy…” Harry said, shifting down so he was directly beside his mate, stroking his face softly as the hazy grey eyes first came into view. 

“Harry?”

“Right here, love.”

“Why do I feel like shite?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter features an amputation. It is not physically graphic but is very emotionally charged. If this is a trigger for you may want to skip!


End file.
